American Express Company $AXP Shares Sold by Montag A & Associates Inc.

Montag A & Associates Inc. decreased its position in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 8.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 18,060 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 1,737 shares during the quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $6,681,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,881,546 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,950,095,000 after purchasing an additional 146,586 shares during the period. Capital World Investors grew its stake in American Express by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 5,122,335 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,701,435,000 after acquiring an additional 24,297 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors grew its stake in American Express by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 4,452,660 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,479,019,000 after acquiring an additional 29,331 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its stake in American Express by 27.0% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,970,416 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,310,515,000 after acquiring an additional 845,283 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc grew its stake in American Express by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,483,876 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,157,204,000 after acquiring an additional 83,189 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In other news, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 15,000 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $356.58, for a total transaction of $5,348,700.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 8,945 shares in the company, valued at $3,189,608.10. The trade was a 62.64% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Howard Grosfield sold 8,134 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $346.73, for a total value of $2,820,301.82. Following the transaction, the insider owned 9,433 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,270,704.09. This represents a 46.30% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 73,944 shares of company stock worth $26,114,366. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

American Express Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of AXP stock opened at $319.74 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $311.71 and its two-hundred day moving average is $344.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a current ratio of 1.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $218.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.95, a PEG ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.08. American Express Company has a fifty-two week low of $273.10 and a fifty-two week high of $387.49.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 23rd. The payment services company reported $4.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.01 by $0.27. The company had revenue of $14.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.60 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 33.95% and a net margin of 15.13%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.64 EPS. American Express has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.300-17.900 EPS. Research analysts expect that American Express Company will post 17.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 3rd will be issued a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 2nd. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. American Express’s payout ratio is 23.71%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on AXP. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of American Express from $323.00 to $322.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 24th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on shares of American Express from $400.00 to $360.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Credit Suisse Group set a $328.00 price target on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $415.00 price target on shares of American Express in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $357.47.

American Express Company Profile

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.