Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC Lowers Position in American Express Company $AXP

Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC decreased its position in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 5.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 65,395 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 4,079 shares during the quarter. American Express accounts for approximately 1.8% of Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $21,722,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. increased its holdings in American Express by 1.0% in the third quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,910 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $967,000 after buying an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Sandy Cove Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of American Express by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Sandy Cove Advisors LLC now owns 1,462 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $485,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Bath Savings Trust Co raised its holdings in American Express by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Bath Savings Trust Co now owns 2,922 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $971,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the period. Jamison Private Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of American Express by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Jamison Private Wealth Management Inc. now owns 4,220 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,402,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the period. Finally, Berger Financial Group Inc raised its position in American Express by 1.4% during the third quarter. Berger Financial Group Inc now owns 2,232 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $741,000 after acquiring an additional 31 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on AXP shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded American Express from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $395.00 to $420.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 22nd. DZ Bank upgraded shares of American Express from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $340.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. Barclays raised their price target on shares of American Express from $355.00 to $367.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Compass Point reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $324.00 price objective on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, October 20th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, American Express presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $342.40.

American Express Price Performance

American Express stock opened at $383.81 on Wednesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $367.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $338.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a current ratio of 1.61. American Express Company has a 1 year low of $220.43 and a 1 year high of $387.49. The company has a market capitalization of $264.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.15.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The payment services company reported ($11.85) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.56 by ($15.41). American Express had a net margin of 14.97% and a return on equity of 33.41%. The company had revenue of ($17,139.00) million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.91 billion. As a group, equities research analysts expect that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at American Express

In other news, CMO Elizabeth Rutledge sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $360.21, for a total value of $18,010,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer owned 85,577 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $30,825,691.17. This trade represents a 36.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Douglas Tabish sold 2,515 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.61, for a total transaction of $894,359.15. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 57,515 shares of company stock worth $20,658,509 in the last three months. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

American Express Profile

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.