American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by Howard Capital Management Group LLC

Howard Capital Management Group LLC lessened its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 2.2% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 8,426 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 189 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Group LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $2,501,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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

American Express Price Performance

AXP stock opened at $318.07 on Wednesday. American Express has a 1 year low of $184.06 and a 1 year high of $319.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 1.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $224.07 billion, a PE ratio of 23.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.47 and a beta of 1.23. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $299.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $272.78.

American Express Announces Dividend

The business 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. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.88%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.60%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on AXP. StockNews.com raised American Express from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, January 11th. Compass Point raised their price objective on shares of American Express from $315.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Monness Crespi & Hardt boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Express presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $278.09.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In other news, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.48, for a total transaction of $1,820,880.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 6,433 shares in the company, valued at $1,952,286.84. This trade represents a 48.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 109,691 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,724,067.18. The trade was a 10.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

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.