Essex Savings Bank Trims Stock Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Essex Savings Bank cut its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,900 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 111 shares during the quarter. Essex Savings Bank’s holdings in American Express were worth $786,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. grew its stake in shares of American Express by 42.2% in the second quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. now owns 165 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 49 shares in the last quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC bought a new position in American Express during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Founders Capital Management bought a new position in American Express during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $46,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of American Express in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $48,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Express news, 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 directly owns 109,691 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,724,067.18. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other American Express news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the insider now owns 109,691 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,724,067.18. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.26, for a total transaction of $21,049,740.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 111,656 shares in the company, valued at $30,176,150.56. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of AXP opened at $287.60 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $202.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.21. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $268.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $249.32. American Express has a 12 month low of $152.05 and a 12 month high of $296.83.

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

American Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Friday, October 4th were issued a $0.70 dividend. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.60%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on American Express from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on American Express from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their target price on American Express from $265.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on American Express from $265.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut American Express from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $268.00 to $286.00 in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $253.09.

American Express Company 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.