American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by Kentucky Retirement Systems

Kentucky Retirement Systems decreased its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 8.6% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 39,126 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 3,695 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in American Express were worth $10,611,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AXP. Coastline Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of American Express by 3.3% during the third quarter. Coastline Trust Co now owns 27,080 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $7,344,000 after purchasing an additional 858 shares during the last quarter. KCM Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in American Express by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. KCM Investment Advisors LLC now owns 11,878 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $3,221,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the period. Birchcreek Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in American Express by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Birchcreek Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,772 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $481,000 after buying an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its stake in American Express by 2.0% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 14,291 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $3,876,000 after buying an additional 281 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Empirical Finance LLC lifted its stake in American Express by 1.7% in the third quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 20,444 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $5,544,000 after buying an additional 347 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. BTIG Research cut shares of American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $230.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Barclays lifted their price target on American Express from $250.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on American Express from $248.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. TD Cowen raised their target price on American Express from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt boosted their price target on American Express from $265.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $253.09.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In related news, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of American Express 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 directly owns 109,691 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,724,067.18. This trade represents a 10.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AXP opened at $286.80 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $272.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $251.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $202.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.10, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. American Express has a 52-week low of $157.97 and a 52-week high of $296.83.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly 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 return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 15.32%. The firm had revenue of $16.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.68 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.30 EPS. American Express’s revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that American Express will post 13.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 4th were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 4th. American Express’s payout ratio is 20.60%.

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.