Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc. Reduces Stock Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 11.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 22,919 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 2,906 shares during the period. Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $6,802,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new position in American Express during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its holdings in American Express by 332.0% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the 3rd quarter valued at about $46,000. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Express 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 transaction, the insider now owns 111,656 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,176,150.56. This represents a 41.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the business’s 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 sale, the insider now owns 109,691 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,724,067.18. This represents a 10.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 96,998 shares of company stock worth $26,423,439. 0.12% of the stock is owned by insiders.

American Express Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:AXP opened at $312.75 on Friday. American Express has a 1 year low of $177.81 and a 1 year high of $315.40. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $298.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $271.18. The company has a market cap of $220.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.01, a PEG ratio of 1.38 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 posted its earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.22. American Express had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 32.46%. The business had revenue of $16.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.68 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.30 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that American Express will post 13.48 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Investors of record on Friday, January 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.90%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.60%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on AXP. Barclays increased their price target on shares of American Express from $250.00 to $257.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on American Express from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Hsbc Global Res cut American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Truist Financial began coverage on American Express in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $350.00 price objective for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of American Express from $301.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $278.09.

American Express 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.