American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd

Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd decreased its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 35.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,739 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 2,581 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,406,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of American Express from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Argus cut shares of American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Truist Financial dropped their target price on shares of American Express from $350.00 to $343.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Evercore ISI upped their price target on American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on American Express from $301.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $302.24.

American Express Trading Down 5.8 %

Shares of NYSE:AXP opened at $233.50 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $164.04 billion, a PE ratio of 16.67, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.16. The company’s 50 day moving average is $288.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $289.44. American Express has a 52 week low of $214.51 and a 52 week high of $326.28. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. Equities analysts predict that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.82 per share. This is a boost from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.40%. American Express’s payout ratio is presently 23.41%.

Insider Activity at American Express

In related news, Director Michael J. Angelakis purchased 3,700 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $998,593. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total transaction of $4,765,295.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 23,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,492,492.04. This represents a 38.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

American Express Company 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.