Colonial Trust Co SC Sells 227 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Colonial Trust Co SC reduced its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 5.6% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,863 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 227 shares during the quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,146,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of AXP stock opened at $275.68 on Wednesday. American Express has a 12 month low of $220.43 and a 12 month high of $326.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $193.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.68, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.23. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $263.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $286.89.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $16.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 last year, the company posted $3.33 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.19%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is 22.91%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 3,019 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.66, for a total value of $799,008.54. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,919 shares in the company, valued at $2,889,822.54. This represents a 21.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis purchased 3,700 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at $998,593. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AXP has been the subject of several recent research reports. StockNews.com downgraded shares of American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Baird R W upgraded shares of American Express from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on American Express from $320.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $295.05.

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.