American Express (NYSE:AXP) Position Cut by Sentry Investment Management LLC

Sentry Investment Management LLC lowered its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 20.1% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 3,799 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 954 shares during the period. American Express makes up approximately 0.5% of Sentry Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest holding. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,127,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. increased its stake in American Express by 17.2% during the 3rd quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 12,739 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $3,455,000 after buying an additional 1,874 shares during the period. IVC Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of American Express in the third quarter valued at approximately $221,000. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the third quarter valued at approximately $235,000. Welch Group LLC raised its holdings in American Express by 9.8% during the third quarter. Welch Group LLC now owns 18,500 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $5,017,000 after purchasing an additional 1,658 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. lifted its position in American Express by 20.7% in the third quarter. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. now owns 10,553 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,862,000 after purchasing an additional 1,813 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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 stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total value of $4,765,295.26. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,492,492.04. This represents a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total transaction of $3,027,327.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 13,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,308,795. This trade represents a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 30,664 shares of company stock valued at $9,613,503 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

AXP stock opened at $295.16 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $307.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $285.47. American Express has a 52 week low of $213.25 and a 52 week high of $326.27. The stock has a market cap of $207.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.07, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.24. 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 (NYSE:AXP) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. Research analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, February 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 3rd were paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 3rd. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.95%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on AXP shares. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on American Express from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted 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. StockNews.com downgraded shares of American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. HSBC boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Truist Financial assumed coverage on shares of American Express in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $350.00 price target on the stock. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Express currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $296.38.

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.