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

Buttonwood Financial Advisors Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 3.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,014 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 369 shares during the period. American Express comprises 1.3% of Buttonwood Financial Advisors Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Buttonwood Financial Advisors Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $2,972,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of AXP. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 0.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,483,512 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $3,104,735,000 after buying an additional 86,100 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in American Express by 8.5% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,003,715 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,984,208,000 after acquiring an additional 866,110 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in American Express by 5.5% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,606,986 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,249,415,000 after purchasing an additional 239,173 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in shares of American Express by 0.8% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,960,842 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,074,168,000 after purchasing an additional 33,193 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in shares of American Express by 12.7% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,203,772 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $655,137,000 after purchasing an additional 247,864 shares during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other American Express news, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the firm’s 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 109,691 shares in the company, valued at $29,724,067.18. This trade represents a 10.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Caillec Christophe Le sold 6,000 shares of American Express 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 directly owns 6,433 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,952,286.84. This trade represents a 48.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

AXP stock opened at $320.87 on Monday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $302.35 and its 200 day moving average price is $275.17. American Express has a 12-month low of $186.43 and a 12-month high of $326.27. 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 company has a market capitalization of $226.04 billion, a PE ratio of 23.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.23.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Express will post 13.4 EPS for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their price objective on American Express from $300.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on American Express from $252.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. BTIG Research lifted their target price on shares of American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of American Express from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, HSBC boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $281.00.

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.