Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI Sells 4,249 Shares of American Express Company $AXP

Key Points

• Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. sold 4,249 shares of American Express, reducing its holdings by 3.3%, but still retains approximately $39 million worth of shares.
• Insider transactions indicate significant sell-offs, including CEO Stephen J. Squeri, who sold over 112,000 shares valued at $37 million, reflecting a substantial decrease in their holdings.
• Wall Street analysts remain optimistic, with target price increases from several firms, suggesting a consensus average target price of $332.65 for American Express stock.

Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI cut its holdings in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 3.3% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 122,885 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 4,249 shares during the period. American Express comprises about 3.0% of Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI's holdings, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Schaper Benz & Wise Investment Counsel Inc. WI's holdings in American Express were worth $39,198,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Bleakley Financial Group LLC raised its stake in American Express by 26.6% in the second quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 15,791 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $5,037,000 after buying an additional 3,321 shares in the last quarter. Reliant Investment Management LLC raised its stake in American Express by 1.9% in the second quarter. Reliant Investment Management LLC now owns 26,189 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $8,354,000 after buying an additional 480 shares in the last quarter. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 3.9% during the second quarter. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC now owns 119,992 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $38,275,000 after purchasing an additional 4,468 shares in the last quarter. Granite Harbor Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of American Express by 9.1% during the second quarter. Granite Harbor Advisors Inc. now owns 847 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $270,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Forum Financial Management LP increased its position in shares of American Express by 19.5% during the second quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 7,944 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $2,534,000 after purchasing an additional 1,296 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Express news, insider Laureen Seeger sold 16,998 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $294.83, for a total value of $5,011,520.34. Following the sale, the insider owned 9,001 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,653,764.83. The trade was a 65.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 112,272 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $329.86, for a total value of $37,034,041.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 92,810 shares in the company, valued at $30,614,306.60. This represents a 54.74% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 269,996 shares of company stock worth $85,261,270 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on American Express from $371.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on American Express from $311.00 to $362.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, September 29th. BTIG Research lifted their target price on American Express from $277.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on American Express from $343.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $332.65.

American Express Stock Performance

NYSE AXP opened at $351.68 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78. American Express Company has a 52-week low of $220.43 and a 52-week high of $357.73. The business's 50-day moving average price is $328.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $304.16. The firm has a market cap of $242.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.29.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 17th. The payment services company reported $4.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.98 by $0.16. American Express had a return on equity of 33.41% and a net margin of 14.97%.The firm had revenue of $18.43 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.03 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.49 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. American Express has set its FY 2025 guidance at 15.200-15.500 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be issued a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. American Express's payout ratio is currently 22.01%.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.