American Express (NYSE:AXP) is Salvus Wealth Management LLC's 7th Largest Position

Salvus Wealth Management LLC cut its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 19.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 16,578 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 4,084 shares during the quarter. American Express comprises approximately 2.8% of Salvus Wealth Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Salvus Wealth Management LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $4,460,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in AXP. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Nexus Investment Management ULC acquired a new stake in American Express during the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

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

American Express Trading Up 2.3%

Shares of AXP stock traded up $6.75 during trading on Friday, hitting $302.71. 2,098,953 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,830,302. American Express has a 52-week low of $220.43 and a 52-week high of $326.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $212.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.25. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $272.96 and its 200-day moving average price is $288.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.57.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Redburn Atlantic upgraded 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. Robert W. Baird raised shares of American Express from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $265.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 14th. 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 note on Monday, April 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of American Express from $367.00 to $330.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued 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.

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.