Seizert Capital Partners LLC Cuts Stake in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP)

Key Points

• Seizert Capital Partners LLC has reduced its holdings in American Express by 30.5%, now owning 24,180 shares worth approximately $6.5 million.
• Several institutional investors have significantly increased their positions in American Express, with DZ BANK AG raising its stake by 463.3% and GAMMA Investing LLC increasing by 27,625.2%.
• American Express recently posted strong quarterly earnings, reporting $4.08 EPS, exceeding analysts' estimates and showing a 9.3% increase in revenue year-over-year.

Seizert Capital Partners LLC decreased its stake in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 30.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,180 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 10,613 shares during the quarter. Seizert Capital Partners LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $6,506,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of American Express by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,752,084 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $3,484,312,000 after purchasing an additional 268,572 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in American Express by 16.3% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,825,135 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $2,025,632,000 after acquiring an additional 955,811 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in American Express by 8.9% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,015,269 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $1,488,482,000 after acquiring an additional 408,283 shares during the period. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main lifted its position in shares of American Express by 463.3% in the fourth quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 4,357,487 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $1,293,259,000 after acquiring an additional 3,583,959 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital World Investors boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,704,271 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $1,099,391,000 after acquiring an additional 74,977 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on AXP shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on American Express from $371.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Wells Fargo & Company set a $327.00 target price on shares of American Express in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, DZ Bank downgraded shares of American Express from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, American Express currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $311.05.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the insider directly owned 10,957 shares of the company's stock, 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 Anna Marrs sold 5,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.77, for a total transaction of $1,709,235.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 20,311 shares in the company, valued at $6,312,049.47. This represents a 21.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 64,950 shares of company stock valued at $19,787,710. Insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

American Express Trading Down 1.7%

NYSE:AXP traded down $5.06 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $294.25. 3,012,929 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,476,523. The firm has a market capitalization of $204.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.65, a P/E/G ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.28. The firm's fifty day moving average is $305.99 and its 200-day moving average is $291.53. 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.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $3.86 by $0.22. The business 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 revenue for the quarter was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.49 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be issued a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 3rd. American Express's dividend payout ratio is presently 23.02%.

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.