Trust Asset Management LLC Sells 37 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Trust Asset Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,907 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 37 shares during the period. Trust Asset Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,873,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in American Express by 26,783.5% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 909,737 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,467,210,000 after purchasing an additional 906,353 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado raised its stake in shares of American Express by 924.2% during the 2nd quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 851,431 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $197,149,000 after acquiring an additional 768,301 shares in the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC lifted its position in American Express by 59,816.0% during the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 682,443 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $185,079,000 after acquiring an additional 681,304 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its holdings in American Express by 71.9% in the second quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 1,164,098 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $269,547,000 after purchasing an additional 486,755 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the first quarter worth $96,943,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on AXP shares. Barclays boosted their target price on American Express from $250.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Hsbc Global Res cut shares of American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $248.00 to $252.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on American Express from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on American Express from $263.00 to $265.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $253.09.

American Express Price Performance

NYSE AXP traded up $1.85 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $303.15. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 211,075 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,889,175. The firm has a market capitalization of $213.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.17, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.21. The company’s 50-day moving average is $276.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $253.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 1.63. American Express has a 1-year low of $163.32 and a 1-year high of $304.48.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.22. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 15.32%. The business had revenue of $16.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $16.68 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.30 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that American Express will post 13.4 EPS for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Friday, October 4th were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 4th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.92%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.60%.

Insider Activity at American Express

In related news, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.26, for a total value of $21,049,740.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 111,656 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,176,150.56. This represents a 41.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.98, for a total value of $3,552,818.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 109,691 shares in the company, valued at $29,724,067.18. The trade was a 10.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.11% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.