Sprucegrove Investment Management Ltd. Sells 16,807 Shares of American Express Company $AXP

Key Points

• Sprucegrove Investment Management Ltd. reduced its stake in American Express by 27%, now holding 45,390 shares valued at approximately $12.21 million.
• Insider sales have also occurred, with notable transactions including Glenda G. Mcneal selling 50,000 shares for over $15.47 million, indicating a substantial decrease in ownership.
• American Express reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, with $4.08 EPS against a consensus estimate of $3.86, contributing to a revenue increase of 9.3% year-over-year.

Sprucegrove Investment Management Ltd. decreased its position in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 27.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,390 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 16,807 shares during the quarter. American Express accounts for 1.0% of Sprucegrove Investment Management Ltd.'s portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. Sprucegrove Investment Management Ltd.'s holdings in American Express were worth $12,212,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Forvis Mazars Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in American Express by 41.3% in the 1st quarter. Forvis Mazars Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 15,074 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $4,056,000 after acquiring an additional 4,408 shares during the last quarter. Boston Family Office LLC boosted its position in shares of American Express by 15.8% during the first quarter. Boston Family Office LLC now owns 13,200 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $3,551,000 after buying an additional 1,800 shares during the last quarter. Gen Wealth Partners Inc increased its holdings in American Express by 6.4% in the 1st quarter. Gen Wealth Partners Inc now owns 4,804 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $1,293,000 after buying an additional 287 shares in the last quarter. Ethic Inc. increased its holdings in American Express by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 78,736 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $21,297,000 after buying an additional 1,421 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 17.0% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,171 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $1,122,000 after buying an additional 605 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other American Express news, insider Anna Marrs sold 5,500 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $310.77, for a total value of $1,709,235.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 20,311 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,312,049.47. The trade was a 21.31% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 50,000 shares of the firm'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 transaction, the insider directly owned 10,957 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,391,191.50. This trade represents a 82.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 134,219 shares of company stock worth $40,555,901 in the last quarter. 0.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

American Express Stock Performance

NYSE:AXP traded down $0.9370 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $306.1130. 2,215,219 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,366,112. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $307.33 and its 200-day moving average price is $289.90. American Express Company has a one year low of $220.43 and a one year high of $329.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The firm has a market cap of $213.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.28.

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

American Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 3rd. American Express's dividend payout ratio is 23.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on AXP. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, July 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on American Express from $360.00 to $371.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Redburn Atlantic raised American Express from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their target price for the company from $270.00 to $255.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. BTIG Research set a $277.00 target price on American Express and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of American Express from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $311.05.

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.