Argent Trust Co Sells 683 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Argent Trust Co reduced its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 1.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 50,057 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 683 shares during the period. Argent Trust Co’s holdings in American Express were worth $14,856,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AXP. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina boosted its holdings in shares of American Express by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 304,439 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $90,354,000 after purchasing an additional 2,390 shares during the period. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in American Express by 11.5% in the 4th quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 3,084 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $915,000 after purchasing an additional 319 shares during the period. Scotia Capital Inc. grew its position in shares of American Express by 13.7% in the fourth quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 25,983 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $7,712,000 after purchasing an additional 3,137 shares in the last quarter. F M Investments LLC grew its position in American Express by 8.3% in the fourth quarter. F M Investments LLC now owns 19,045 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $5,652,000 after acquiring an additional 1,456 shares during the period. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of American Express by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 41,828 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $12,415,000 after buying an additional 961 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In related news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider now owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at $7,492,492.04. This trade represents a 38.88 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis bought 3,700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $998,593. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

AXP traded down $13.03 during trading on Thursday, reaching $249.33. 225,486 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,860,010. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.58. American Express has a 12-month low of $214.51 and a 12-month high of $326.28. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $281.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $288.51. The company has a market cap of $175.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.83, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.16.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. On average, equities analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be issued a $0.82 dividend. This is a boost from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.32%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.41%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on AXP shares. Robert W. Baird upgraded American Express from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $265.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. HSBC upped their price target on American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Baird R W raised American Express from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $299.24.

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.