Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD Sells 966,606 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lessened its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 10.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,429,912 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 966,606 shares during the quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD owned 1.20% of American Express worth $2,501,914,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in American Express in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new stake in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Financial Life Planners bought a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter worth $40,000. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of AXP stock opened at $252.69 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $270.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $287.37. The stock has a market cap of $177.52 billion, a PE ratio of 18.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. American Express has a 12 month low of $220.43 and a 12 month high of $326.28.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.17. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. The business had revenue of $16.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.33 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.30%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.91%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on AXP shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on American Express from $244.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday. Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of American Express from $340.00 to $315.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Compass Point lowered their price target on shares of American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $297.16.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In other American Express news, Director Michael J. Angelakis acquired 3,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $998,593. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was 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 directly owns 13,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,308,795. The trade was a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

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.