Gamco Investors INC. ET AL Has $131.95 Million Stock Holdings in American Express Company $AXP

Key Points

• Gamco Investors INC. ET AL reduced its stake in American Express by 4.6%, owning approximately $131.95 million worth of shares, making it the company's 6th largest holding.
• American Express reported quarterly earnings of $4.08 per share, exceeding estimates, with revenue rising 9.3% year-over-year to $17.86 billion.
• The company has recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.82 per share, reflecting an annual yield of 1.0% and a payout ratio of 23.02%.

Gamco Investors INC. ET AL cut its holdings in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 4.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 490,444 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 23,743 shares during the period. American Express makes up 1.5% of Gamco Investors INC. ET AL's investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL owned 0.07% of American Express worth $131,954,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new stake in American Express during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in American Express in the first quarter worth about $29,000. Nexus Investment Management ULC acquired a new position in American Express in the first quarter worth about $34,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in American Express in the first quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, IAG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the first quarter worth approximately $40,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American Express Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of NYSE:AXP traded up $4.63 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $331.62. 2,980,947 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,304,664. American Express Company has a fifty-two week low of $220.43 and a fifty-two week high of $332.06. The company has a quick ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $311.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $290.39. The firm has a market cap of $230.77 billion, a PE ratio of 23.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.28.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 18th. The payment services company reported $4.08 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.86 by $0.22. American Express had a net margin of 14.78% and a return on equity of 32.87%. The business had revenue of $17.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.70 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.49 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 3rd. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. American Express's payout ratio is currently 23.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on AXP shares. DZ Bank lowered shares of American Express from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered shares of American Express from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, July 14th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of American Express from $249.00 to $297.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on shares of American Express from $371.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $311.05.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In other news, insider Anna Marrs sold 5,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.77, for a total transaction of $1,709,235.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 20,311 shares in the company, valued at $6,312,049.47. The trade was a 21.31% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Laureen Seeger sold 61,721 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $297.47, for a total transaction of $18,360,145.87. Following the transaction, the insider owned 9,001 shares in the company, valued at $2,677,527.47. This represents a 87.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 134,219 shares of company stock worth $40,555,901 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

American Express Profile

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.