Arden Trust Co Sells 88 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Arden Trust Co reduced its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 6.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,297 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 88 shares during the period. Arden Trust Co’s holdings in American Express were worth $300,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Scarborough Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in American Express during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new stake in American Express during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Sachetta LLC bought a new stake in American Express in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, WFA Asset Management Corp bought a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Price Performance

NYSE:AXP traded down $2.29 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $228.83. 2,663,656 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,043,792. American Express has a 12-month low of $140.91 and a 12-month high of $256.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74. The company has a market cap of $164.60 billion, a PE ratio of 19.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.21. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $236.52 and its 200 day moving average price is $227.13.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The payment services company reported $3.49 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.26 by $0.23. American Express had a return on equity of 32.94% and a net margin of 15.53%. The business had revenue of $16.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.60 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.89 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that American Express will post 13.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other American Express news, insider Jennifer Skyler sold 14,802 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 10th. The stock was 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 $3,957,361.83. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on American Express from $167.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on American Express from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 8th. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $243.00 to $255.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of American Express from $265.00 to $267.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, BTIG Research initiated coverage on shares of American Express in a research report on Friday, June 7th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $230.70.

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.