Moody National Bank Trust Division Reduces Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Moody National Bank Trust Division decreased its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 5.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 10,880 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 674 shares during the quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division’s holdings in American Express were worth $3,229,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Auxier Asset Management increased its position in shares of American Express by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Auxier Asset Management now owns 7,133 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,934,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Abel Hall LLC raised its position in American Express by 3.6% in the third quarter. Abel Hall LLC now owns 1,011 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $274,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of American Express by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,467 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $398,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Financial Strategies LLC raised its holdings in American Express by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Legacy Financial Strategies LLC now owns 1,632 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $443,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the period. Finally, Concord Wealth Partners lifted its position in American Express by 10.5% during the third quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 422 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $114,000 after purchasing an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:AXP traded up $2.48 during trading on Monday, hitting $295.78. The company had a trading volume of 852,594 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,034,308. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $296.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $269.64. American Express has a one year low of $177.81 and a one year high of $307.82. The stock has a market cap of $208.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 1.63.

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

American Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd will be paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.95%. American Express’s payout ratio is 20.60%.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In other news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.48, for a total value of $1,820,880.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 6,433 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,952,286.84. The trade was a 48.26 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 96,998 shares of company stock worth $26,423,439. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on American Express from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of American Express from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday. Compass Point lifted their target price on shares of American Express from $315.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, American Express presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $277.82.

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.