Employees Retirement System of Texas Sells 1,800 Shares of American Express Company $AXP

Employees Retirement System of Texas lessened its holdings in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 196,400 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 1,800 shares during the period. Employees Retirement System of Texas’ holdings in American Express were worth $65,236,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXP. Gratus Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Gratus Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,712 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,233,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the period. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp lifted its position in shares of American Express by 10.0% during the 3rd quarter. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp now owns 308 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $105,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the period. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in American Express by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,910 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $967,000 after buying an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Walkner Condon Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in American Express by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Walkner Condon Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,378 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $458,000 after buying an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sandy Cove Advisors LLC grew its position in American Express by 2.1% in the third quarter. Sandy Cove Advisors LLC now owns 1,462 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $485,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on AXP. BTIG Research reissued a “sell” rating and set a $328.00 price objective on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of American Express from $420.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $420.00 target price on shares of American Express in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Credit Suisse Group set a $328.00 price target on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 price target on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Express presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $352.73.

Insider Activity at American Express

In related news, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.58, for a total value of $5,348,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 8,945 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,189,608.10. This trade represents a 62.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Anna Marrs sold 27,425 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $350.01, for a total transaction of $9,599,024.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 20,394 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,138,103.94. This trade represents a 57.35% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 73,944 shares of company stock valued at $26,114,366 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of AXP stock opened at $301.69 on Friday. American Express Company has a 52 week low of $220.43 and a 52 week high of $387.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $207.14 billion, a PE ratio of 19.60, a PEG ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a current ratio of 1.59. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $345.46 and its 200-day moving average is $348.85.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The payment services company reported $3.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.54 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of ($17,139.00) million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.91 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.00% and a return on equity of 33.49%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.04 earnings per share. American Express has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.300-17.900 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 3rd will be paid a $0.95 dividend. This is a boost from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 2nd. American Express’s payout ratio is presently 21.31%.

About American Express

American Express is a global financial services company primarily known for its payment card products, travel services and merchant network. Founded in 1850 as an express mail business, the company evolved through the 20th century into a payments and travel-focused organization. Its core activities include issuing consumer and commercial charge and credit cards, operating a global card acceptance and processing network, and providing travel-related services and customer loyalty programs.

American Express issues a range of products for individuals, small businesses and large corporations, including personal cards, business and corporate cards, and co?brand partnerships with airlines, hotels and retailers.