ST Germain D J Co. Inc. Cuts Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

ST Germain D J Co. Inc. lessened its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 14.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 33,221 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 5,690 shares during the period. ST Germain D J Co. Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $7,564,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in American Express during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. BKM Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new position in American Express during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Pacifica Partners Inc. purchased a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Baldwin Brothers LLC MA raised its stake in shares of American Express by 134.8% during the fourth quarter. Baldwin Brothers LLC MA now owns 155 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 89 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of AXP stock traded up $1.04 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $229.31. The stock had a trading volume of 2,176,112 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,044,221. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.70, a current ratio of 1.62 and a quick ratio of 1.62. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $232.79 and a 200-day simple moving average of $212.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $164.94 billion, a PE ratio of 18.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.22. American Express has a twelve month low of $140.91 and a twelve month high of $244.41.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.97 by $0.36. The company had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $15.79 billion. American Express had a net margin of 14.50% and a return on equity of 32.46%. American Express’s revenue was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.40 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that American Express will post 13.01 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm 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 $0.70 dividend. This is a boost from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 5th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.22%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AXP has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of American Express from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 4th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on American Express from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Barclays restated an “equal weight” rating and set a $221.00 price objective (up previously from $220.00) on shares of American Express in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, June 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of American Express from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $220.30.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $238.63, for a total value of $9,276,263.99. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 76,310 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,209,855.30. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other American Express news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 76,310 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,209,855.30. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Jennifer Skyler sold 14,802 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.73, for a total value of $3,578,087.46. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 16,371 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,957,361.83. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 177,717 shares of company stock valued at $41,680,999. Company insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

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.