Sciencast Management LP Has $1.99 Million Holdings in American Express Company $AXP

Key Points

• Sciencast Management LP reduced its stake in American Express by 27.8%, selling 2,847 shares, and now holds 7,405 shares valued at approximately $1,992,000.
• Several institutional investors have adjusted their holdings in American Express, with 84.33% of the company owned by institutional investors.
• Analysts provided varied ratings for American Express, with a consensus target price of $313.45 and eight analysts rating it as a Buy.

Sciencast Management LP lessened its stake in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 27.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,405 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 2,847 shares during the quarter. Sciencast Management LP's holdings in American Express were worth $1,992,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. boosted its position in American Express by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. now owns 772 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $208,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. Tyler Stone Wealth Management boosted its position in American Express by 4.8% during the 1st quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management now owns 792 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $213,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the period. Hemington Wealth Management boosted its position in American Express by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 1,661 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $446,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in American Express by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,620 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $436,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its position in American Express by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 5,236 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $1,362,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company's stock.

American Express Stock Down 1.2%

NYSE:AXP traded down $3.84 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $325.48. 2,000,286 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,883,122. The firm has a market cap of $226.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.28. American Express Company has a twelve month low of $220.43 and a twelve month high of $332.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a current ratio of 1.61. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $313.34 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $291.71.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The payment services company reported $4.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.86 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $17.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.70 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.87% and a net margin of 14.78%.American Express's quarterly revenue was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.49 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 112,272 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $329.86, for a total transaction of $37,034,041.92. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 92,810 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,614,306.60. The trade was a 54.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 23,505 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.37, for a total value of $7,671,326.85. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 123,613 shares in the company, valued at $40,343,574.81. The trade was a 15.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 269,996 shares of company stock valued at $85,261,270 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on AXP shares. Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered American Express from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on American Express from $360.00 to $371.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on American Express from $250.00 to $311.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on American Express from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Express presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $313.45.

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.