Winslow Asset Management Inc. Reduces Position in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP)

Winslow Asset Management Inc. lessened its stake in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 3.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 32,566 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 1,139 shares during the period. American Express makes up about 1.9% of Winslow Asset Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Winslow Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in American Express were worth $8,762,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Whittier Trust Co. boosted its position in shares of American Express by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 68,718 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $18,488,000 after purchasing an additional 388 shares during the period. BluePointe Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of American Express by 24.2% during the 1st quarter. BluePointe Capital Management LLC now owns 1,025 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $276,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Provident Trust Co. purchased a new position in American Express in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $126,119,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC boosted its position in American Express by 39.0% in the 1st quarter. Hager Investment Management Services LLC now owns 3,898 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $1,049,000 after buying an additional 1,093 shares during the period. Finally, Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. boosted its position in American Express by 23.9% in the 1st quarter. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. now owns 11,048 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $2,972,000 after buying an additional 2,132 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on AXP shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of American Express from $360.00 to $371.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $342.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of American Express from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $270.00 to $255.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Bank of America upgraded shares of American Express from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $325.00 to $274.00 in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, BTIG Research set a $277.00 price objective on American Express and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $307.68.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

American Express Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE AXP opened at $320.83 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $301.65 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $290.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.58. American Express Company has a 52-week low of $220.43 and a 52-week high of $329.14. The stock has a market cap of $224.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.25.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be given a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 3rd. American Express's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.91%.

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.

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