Voya Investment Management LLC Sells 12,048 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Voya Investment Management LLC lessened its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 7.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 157,889 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 12,048 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $46,860,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC grew its stake in American Express by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 18,268 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $5,422,000 after buying an additional 371 shares during the last quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. grew its position in American Express by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. now owns 174,093 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $51,836,000 after acquiring an additional 6,662 shares during the last quarter. Evercore Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Evercore Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,031 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $4,164,000 after purchasing an additional 343 shares in the last quarter. Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in American Express by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,910 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,160,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CSM Advisors LLC boosted its stake in American Express by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. CSM Advisors LLC now owns 19,825 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $5,886,000 after purchasing an additional 455 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on AXP shares. Bank of America raised American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and cut their price target for the company from $325.00 to $274.00 in a report on Friday, April 11th. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their target price on shares of American Express from $275.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of American Express from $320.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on American Express from $367.00 to $330.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $295.05.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In related news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total transaction of $4,765,295.26. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at $7,492,492.04. This trade represents a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total transaction of $3,027,327.45. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of AXP stock opened at $264.79 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.58 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. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $267.65 and a 200-day moving average of $287.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $185.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.16.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $16.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.04 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.33 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share 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 dividend of $0.82 per share. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 22.91%.

American Express 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.