Central Bank & Trust Co. Has $697,000 Stock Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Central Bank & Trust Co. boosted its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 62.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,591 shares of the payment services company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Central Bank & Trust Co.'s holdings in American Express were worth $697,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of AXP. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new stake in American Express in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new stake in American Express during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Nexus Investment Management ULC bought a new stake in American Express during the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Curio Wealth LLC bought a new stake in American Express during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on AXP shares. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $310.00 price target on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Baird R W upgraded shares of American Express from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of American Express from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $270.00 to $255.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $244.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, American Express currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $296.05.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other American Express news, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 3,019 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.66, for a total transaction of $799,008.54. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,919 shares in the company, valued at $2,889,822.54. This trade represents a 21.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Howard Grosfield sold 9,450 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.50, for a total transaction of $2,603,475.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 9,402 shares in the company, valued at $2,590,251. The trade was a 50.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

American Express Trading Up 2.3%

Shares of American Express stock opened at $302.71 on Friday. American Express has a 12-month low of $220.43 and a 12-month high of $326.28. The company has a market cap of $212.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.61, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The company's 50-day moving average price is $273.60 and its 200-day moving average price is $289.10.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $16.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.04 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.33 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About American Express

American Express Company, together with its subsidiaries, operates as integrated payments company in the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, the Asia Pacific, Australia, New Zealand, Latin America, Canada, the Caribbean, and Internationally. It operates through four segments: U.S. Consumer Services, Commercial Services, International Card Services, and Global Merchant and Network Services.

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