Cullinan Associates Inc. Sells 42,438 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Cullinan Associates Inc. cut its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 38.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 67,649 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 42,438 shares during the quarter. Cullinan Associates Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $15,403,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of AXP. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,112,747,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership grew its position in shares of American Express by 11.4% in the 4th quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 4,855,211 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $909,575,000 after purchasing an additional 496,153 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of American Express by 21.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,839,276 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $713,202,000 after purchasing an additional 667,695 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc grew its position in shares of American Express by 62.1% in the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,399,494 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $449,521,000 after purchasing an additional 919,337 shares during the period. Finally, Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd. grew its position in shares of American Express by 7.4% in the 4th quarter. Beutel Goodman & Co Ltd. now owns 2,067,858 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $387,392,000 after purchasing an additional 142,763 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Anna Marrs sold 3,592 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.93, for a total transaction of $829,500.56. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 19,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,602,896.76. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, insider Jennifer Skyler sold 14,802 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.73, for a total transaction of $3,578,087.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 16,371 shares in the company, valued at $3,957,361.83. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Anna Marrs sold 3,592 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.93, for a total value of $829,500.56. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 19,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,602,896.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 177,717 shares of company stock valued at $41,680,999. 0.11% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of AXP traded up $0.37 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $234.18. 594,794 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,036,066. The company has a market cap of $168.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.26, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.21. American Express has a fifty-two week low of $140.91 and a fifty-two week 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 firm’s fifty day moving average is $234.69 and its 200 day moving average is $216.40.

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

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.20%. This is a positive change from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 5th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.06%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on American Express from $240.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on American Express from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $245.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on American Express from $222.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $220.30.

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.