Strata Wealth Advisors LLC Sells 2,067 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Strata Wealth Advisors LLC decreased its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 11.8% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 15,412 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 2,067 shares during the period. American Express makes up about 1.2% of Strata Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Strata Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $3,509,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Venture Visionary Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Venture Visionary Partners LLC now owns 23,211 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $4,349,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. lifted its position in American Express by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Management Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 11,587 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,171,000 after acquiring an additional 609 shares in the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its position in American Express by 417.3% in the 4th quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 415,696 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $77,876,000 after acquiring an additional 335,338 shares in the last quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. bought a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $2,460,000. Finally, J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. lifted its position in American Express by 35.6% in the 4th quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 9,806 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,837,000 after acquiring an additional 2,572 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AXP has been the topic of several analyst reports. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on American Express from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. StockNews.com raised American Express from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on American Express from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on American Express from $253.00 to $263.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Citigroup started coverage on American Express in a report on Monday, June 10th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $250.00 price target on the stock. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $220.30.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.63, for a total transaction of $9,276,263.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 76,310 shares in the company, valued at $18,209,855.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $238.63, for a total value of $9,276,263.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 76,310 shares in the company, valued at $18,209,855.30. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 117,309 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.44, for a total value of $27,267,303.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 110,318 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,642,315.92. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 177,717 shares of company stock worth $41,680,999 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

AXP stock traded up $3.15 during trading on Friday, reaching $231.55. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,901,233 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,820,091. American Express has a 1 year low of $140.91 and a 1 year high of $244.41. The company has a quick ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 1.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70. The company has a market capitalization of $166.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.22. The company’s fifty day moving average is $234.69 and its 200-day moving average is $216.40.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.36. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 14.50%. The business had revenue of $15.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.79 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.40 EPS. American Express’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that American Express will post 13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 5th will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. This is a positive change from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 5th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.21%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.06%.

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.