Mengis Capital Management Inc. Sells 1,280 Shares of American Express Company $AXP

Key Points

• Mengis Capital Management Inc. reduced its holdings in American Express by 14.1%, selling 1,280 shares to end up with 7,790 shares valued at $2.48 million.
• Wall Street analysts have issued mixed ratings, with price targets ranging from $277.00 to $394.00, indicating a consensus rating of "Hold" and a target price of $323.55.
• American Express announced a quarterly dividend of $0.82 per share, representing an annualized yield of 1.0%, scheduled for payment on November 10th.

Mengis Capital Management Inc. cut its position in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 14.1% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,790 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 1,280 shares during the quarter. Mengis Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in American Express were worth $2,485,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in American Express in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in American Express in the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. 1 North Wealth Services LLC acquired a new position in American Express in the 1st quarter valued at $37,000. Chung Wu Investment Group LLC acquired a new stake in American Express in the 2nd quarter worth $37,000. Finally, IAG Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in American Express in the 1st quarter worth $40,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on AXP. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of American Express from $311.00 to $362.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, September 29th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of American Express from $297.00 to $336.00 and gave the stock a "cautious" rating in a research report on Monday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of American Express from $371.00 to $394.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 1st. DZ Bank lowered shares of American Express from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, BTIG Research set a $277.00 price target on shares of American Express and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $323.55.

American Express Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of AXP stock opened at $324.09 on Friday. American Express Company has a 12-month low of $220.43 and a 12-month high of $349.19. The company has a market capitalization of $225.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.29. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $321.72 and a 200 day moving average price of $299.74. The company has a quick ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The payment services company reported $4.08 earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $17.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.70 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.49 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.0%. American Express's payout ratio is currently 23.02%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.50, for a total transaction of $15,475,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 10,957 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,391,191.50. The trade was a 82.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Laureen Seeger sold 61,721 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,677,527.47. This represents a 87.27% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 269,996 shares of company stock valued at $85,261,270. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.

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