LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. Sells 1,931 Shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP)

Key Points

• LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. has reduced its holdings in American Express by 50.1%, now owning 1,920 shares worth $517,000, after selling 1,931 shares in the first quarter.
• Many other large investors have also made adjustments; for instance, Principal Financial Group increased its stake by 5.5%, now owning 680,308 shares valued at $183 million.
• American Express reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $4.08, exceeding analysts' expectations, alongside a revenue of $17.86 billion for the quarter, reflecting a 9.3% year-over-year growth.

LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. cut its stake in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 50.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,920 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 1,931 shares during the period. LGT Fund Management Co Ltd.'s holdings in American Express were worth $517,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in American Express by 24.4% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,481 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $1,924,000 after buying an additional 1,273 shares in the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG boosted its holdings in American Express by 24.9% during the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 2,633 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $781,000 after buying an additional 525 shares in the last quarter. GHE LLC boosted its holdings in American Express by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. GHE LLC now owns 17,021 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $5,052,000 after buying an additional 447 shares in the last quarter. FIL Ltd boosted its holdings in American Express by 16.0% during the fourth quarter. FIL Ltd now owns 1,280 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $380,000 after buying an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Advisors Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of American Express by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC now owns 4,601 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $1,366,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American Express Stock Performance

AXP traded down $2.37 during trading on Friday, hitting $305.36. The stock had a trading volume of 2,727,229 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,945,199. The firm has a market cap of $212.49 billion, a PE ratio of 21.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.28. American Express Company has a 12 month low of $220.43 and a 12 month high of $329.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $307.17 and a 200-day simple moving average of $290.42.

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

American Express Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 3rd were issued a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 3rd. American Express's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on AXP shares. Monness Crespi & Hardt downgraded shares of American Express from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $327.00 price target (up previously from $300.00) on shares of American Express in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of American Express from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $270.00 to $255.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $342.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of American Express from $371.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $311.05.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Express news, insider Laureen Seeger sold 61,721 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.47, for a total value of $18,360,145.87. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 9,001 shares in the company, valued at $2,677,527.47. This trade represents a 87.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 50,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.50, for a total transaction of $15,475,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 10,957 shares in the company, valued at $3,391,191.50. This represents a 82.03% 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 quarter. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

American Express Company 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.