Warther Private Wealth LLC Sells 979 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Warther Private Wealth LLC decreased its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 4.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 23,748 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 979 shares during the period. American Express comprises about 2.4% of Warther Private Wealth LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Warther Private Wealth LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $7,048,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in American Express during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $890,000. Leavell Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,943 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,764,000 after buying an additional 295 shares during the period. Guided Capital Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter worth $733,000. Portfolio Design Labs LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter worth $221,000. Finally, Gradient Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter worth $204,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

American Express Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE AXP opened at $309.61 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. American Express has a 12-month low of $207.61 and a 12-month high of $326.27. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $306.45 and its 200-day moving average price is $280.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $218.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.24.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.90%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is 19.99%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Monness Crespi & Hardt boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, January 27th. Citigroup boosted their price target on American Express from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Compass Point decreased their price objective on American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $296.38.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In other news, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.48, for a total transaction of $1,820,880.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 6,433 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,952,286.84. This trade represents a 48.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total transaction of $3,027,327.45. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at $4,308,795. This trade represents a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 30,664 shares of company stock worth $9,613,503. 0.11% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.