Todd Asset Management LLC Decreases Holdings in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP)

Key Points

• Todd Asset Management LLC reduced its holdings in American Express by 35.8%, selling 85,852 shares during the first quarter, leaving them with 154,218 shares valued at approximately $41.5 million.
• Insiders at American Express have been active, with notable sales including Laureen Seeger and Glenda G. Mcneal, who sold a combined total of 66,998 shares, representing significant reductions in their ownership percentages.
• Wall Street analysts have mixed ratings on American Express, with **two** analysts recommending a sell, while **eight** have given a buy rating, reflecting a consensus rating of "Hold" and a target price of **$311.05**.

Todd Asset Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 35.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 154,218 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 85,852 shares during the period. Todd Asset Management LLC's holdings in American Express were worth $41,492,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in American Express in the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Nexus Investment Management ULC purchased a new position in American Express in the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in American Express in the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, IAG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in American Express in the 1st quarter worth approximately $40,000. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company's stock.

American Express Stock Performance

American Express stock traded up $6.80 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $303.03. The company had a trading volume of 2,170,314 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,645,646. American Express Company has a 52 week low of $220.43 and a 52 week high of $329.14. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $306.71 and its 200 day simple moving average is $290.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $210.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.28. 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 issued its earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The payment services company reported $4.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.86 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $17.86 billion during 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%. American Express's quarterly revenue was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.49 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast 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 was paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd were paid a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 3rd. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. American Express's payout ratio is presently 23.02%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on AXP. Wells Fargo & Company set a $327.00 price objective on shares of American Express in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. DZ Bank lowered shares of American Express from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $371.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. BTIG Research set a $277.00 target price on shares of American Express and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt downgraded shares of American Express from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $311.05.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Express news, insider Laureen Seeger sold 16,998 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.83, for a total value of $5,011,520.34. Following the sale, the insider owned 9,001 shares in the company, valued at $2,653,764.83. The trade was a 65.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Anna Marrs sold 5,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the insider owned 20,311 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,312,049.47. The trade was a 21.31% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 134,219 shares of company stock worth $40,555,901 in the last 90 days. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

American Express Company 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.