American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by Sentry Investment Management LLC

Sentry Investment Management LLC lowered its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 20.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,799 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 954 shares during the quarter. American Express accounts for 0.5% of Sentry Investment Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,127,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new position in American Express during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its position in American Express by 332.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in American Express during the third quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Down 0.1 %

NYSE:AXP opened at $295.16 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.58. The company has a market capitalization of $207.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.24. American Express has a one year low of $213.25 and a one year high of $326.27. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $307.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $285.47.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. Sell-side analysts predict that American Express will post 15.33 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.95%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.99%.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In related news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total transaction of $4,765,295.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at $7,492,492.04. This represents a 38.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total value of $3,027,327.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at $4,308,795. The trade was a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In 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 insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on AXP shares. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of American Express from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Monness Crespi & Hardt boosted their price objective on American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Compass Point lowered their target price on American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on American Express from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, American Express presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $296.38.

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.