CoreFirst Bank & Trust Has $534,000 Stock Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

CoreFirst Bank & Trust lowered its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 8.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,848 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 250 shares during the period. CoreFirst Bank & Trust’s holdings in American Express were worth $534,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in American Express by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,490 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $279,000 after buying an additional 49 shares during the period. Level Four Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of American Express by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Level Four Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,188 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $410,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Express by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 5,244 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $982,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of American Express by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,584 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $297,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allegheny Financial Group LTD raised its stake in shares of American Express by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Allegheny Financial Group LTD now owns 4,580 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $858,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

American Express Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of American Express stock traded up $3.53 during trading on Monday, reaching $228.35. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,426,095 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,051,699. The company has a market cap of $164.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.81, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.22. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $232.79 and its two-hundred day moving average is $212.63. American Express has a 52-week low of $140.91 and a 52-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.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 19th. The payment services company reported $3.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.97 by $0.36. The firm had revenue of $15.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $15.79 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 14.50%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.40 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Express will post 13.01 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 5th will be given a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 5th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.23%. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. American Express’s payout ratio is presently 23.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other American Express news, EVP Quinn Jessica Lieberman sold 3,141 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $232.36, for a total transaction of $729,842.76. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 258 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $59,948.88. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 38,873 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 76,310 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,209,855.30. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Quinn Jessica Lieberman sold 3,141 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $232.36, for a total value of $729,842.76. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 258 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $59,948.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 177,717 shares of company stock worth $41,680,999. 0.11% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on AXP shares. HSBC raised their target price on American Express from $232.00 to $239.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of American Express from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised shares of American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $245.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, April 5th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of American Express from $222.00 to $226.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, BTIG Research began coverage on shares of American Express in a report on Friday, June 7th. They issued a “neutral” rating on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, American Express currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $220.30.

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.