Salvus Wealth Management LLC Sells 4,352 Shares of American Express Company $AXP

Salvus Wealth Management LLC trimmed its holdings in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 26.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,018 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 4,352 shares during the quarter. American Express comprises 2.2% of Salvus Wealth Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Salvus Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $3,992,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Access Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of American Express in the second quarter worth about $26,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the second quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Chung Wu Investment Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Howard Hughes Medical Institute bought a new position in American Express in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Solstein Capital LLC acquired a new position in American Express during the 2nd quarter worth $39,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on AXP. Morgan Stanley set a $370.00 target price on American Express in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Wolfe Research began coverage on American Express in a research report on Monday, December 8th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of American Express from $330.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 30th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of American Express from $336.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $330.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $334.30.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Express news, CMO Elizabeth Rutledge sold 50,000 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.21, for a total transaction of $18,010,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer directly owned 85,577 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,825,691.17. The trade was a 36.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Douglas Tabish sold 2,515 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.61, for a total value of $894,359.15. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 2,515 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $894,359.15. This trade represents a 50.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 57,515 shares of company stock valued at $20,658,509. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of AXP stock opened at $376.40 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $259.28 billion, a PE ratio of 25.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.80 and a beta of 1.14. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $360.14 and a 200-day moving average of $331.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 1.59. American Express Company has a one year low of $220.43 and a one year high of $387.49.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The payment services company reported ($11.85) earnings per share for the quarter. American Express had a return on equity of 33.41% and a net margin of 14.97%.The firm had revenue of ($17,139.00) million for the quarter. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 10th. Investors of record on Friday, January 2nd will be given a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.01%.

About American Express

American Express is a global financial services company primarily known for its payment card products, travel services and merchant network. Founded in 1850 as an express mail business, the company evolved through the 20th century into a payments and travel-focused organization. Its core activities include issuing consumer and commercial charge and credit cards, operating a global card acceptance and processing network, and providing travel-related services and customer loyalty programs.

American Express issues a range of products for individuals, small businesses and large corporations, including personal cards, business and corporate cards, and co?brand partnerships with airlines, hotels and retailers.