American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by Buttonwood Financial Advisors Inc.

Buttonwood Financial Advisors Inc. lessened its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 3.6% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 10,014 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 369 shares during the quarter. American Express accounts for about 1.3% of Buttonwood Financial Advisors Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. Buttonwood Financial Advisors Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $2,972,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in American Express by 105.4% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,000 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $232,000 after acquiring an additional 19,400 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of American Express by 31.2% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 109,198 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $25,285,000 after purchasing an additional 25,937 shares during the last quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 6.3% during the second quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 1,129 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $261,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the period. Driehaus Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in American Express in the 2nd quarter valued at $214,000. Finally, SkyView Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in American Express by 12.2% during the 2nd quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,350 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $544,000 after buying an additional 256 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. BTIG Research lifted their target price on shares of American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday. Truist Financial initiated coverage on American Express in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $350.00 price objective on the stock. Hsbc Global Res downgraded American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Compass Point lifted their price target on American Express from $315.00 to $325.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their price objective on American Express from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $281.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of American Express stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now owns 109,691 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,724,067.18. This trade represents a 10.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.48, for a total value of $1,820,880.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 6,433 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,952,286.84. This represents a 48.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

American Express Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of AXP stock opened at $320.87 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $226.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.61, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $302.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $275.17. American Express has a twelve month low of $186.43 and a twelve month high of $326.27.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 32.46%. Research analysts forecast that American Express will post 13.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 10th. Investors of record on Friday, January 3rd will be paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.87%. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 20.60%.

About American Express

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.