Strata Wealth Advisors LLC Lowers Position in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP)

Strata Wealth Advisors LLC trimmed its position in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 15.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,867 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 2,311 shares during the quarter. American Express accounts for approximately 1.1% of Strata Wealth Advisors LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position. Strata Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $3,462,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of AXP. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the first quarter worth $29,000. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Curio Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth $37,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of AXP traded up $1.75 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $313.65. 1,020,216 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,837,010. American Express Company has a 1-year low of $220.43 and a 1-year high of $329.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The company has a market capitalization of $219.74 billion, a PE ratio of 21.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.25. The business has a 50 day moving average of $303.06 and a 200 day moving average of $290.92.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $16.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.04 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.31% and a return on equity of 32.48%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.33 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Investors 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 yield of 1.05%. American Express's dividend payout ratio is currently 22.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Monness Crespi & Hardt downgraded American Express from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Bank of America raised shares of American Express from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $325.00 to $274.00 in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of American Express from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $270.00 to $255.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $360.00 to $371.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $307.68.

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.