Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Cuts Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 8.7% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 5,529 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 526 shares during the quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,641,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in American Express during the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank purchased a new stake in American Express during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its stake in American Express by 332.0% during the 3rd 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. purchased a new stake in American Express during the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in American Express during the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Express news, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total transaction of $3,027,327.45. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at $4,308,795. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total value of $4,765,295.26. Following the sale, the insider now owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,492,492.04. This trade represents a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of American Express stock opened at $310.13 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $306.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $280.31. American Express has a 52 week low of $207.61 and a 52 week high of $326.27. The company has a market capitalization of $218.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.14, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a quick ratio of 1.63, a current ratio of 1.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, analysts expect that American Express will post 15.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Investors of record on Friday, January 3rd were given a $0.70 dividend. 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 currently 19.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their price objective on American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on American Express from $301.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Truist Financial assumed coverage on American Express in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $350.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup lifted their price objective on American Express from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Compass Point cut their price objective on American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $296.38.

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.