Sharkey Howes & Javer Sells 946 Shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP)

Sharkey Howes & Javer lowered its holdings in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 39.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,440 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 946 shares during the period. Sharkey Howes & Javer's holdings in American Express were worth $387,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new position in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Nexus Investment Management ULC bought a new stake in American Express in the first quarter worth $34,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on AXP. Baird R W upgraded American Express from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $310.00 price target on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company set a $327.00 price objective on American Express in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. BTIG Research cut their target price on shares of American Express from $272.00 to $240.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of American Express from $367.00 to $330.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $301.42.

American Express Price Performance

AXP opened at $325.52 on Friday. American Express Company has a 12-month low of $220.43 and a 12-month high of $329.14. The company has a market cap of $228.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $299.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $290.57.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.17. American Express had a net margin of 15.31% and a return on equity of 32.48%. The company had revenue of $16.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.04 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.33 EPS. Research analysts predict that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be given a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 3rd. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.01%. American Express's dividend payout ratio is currently 22.91%.

Insider Activity at American Express

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

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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