Private Trust Co. NA Boosts Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Private Trust Co. NA grew its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP – Get Rating) by 4.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,082 shares of the payment services company’s stock after buying an additional 247 shares during the period. Private Trust Co. NA’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,137,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp grew its stake in shares of American Express by 9.2% in the 1st quarter. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 77,181 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $14,433,000 after buying an additional 6,511 shares during the period. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA boosted its position in shares of American Express by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA now owns 24,605 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $4,601,000 after purchasing an additional 723 shares during the period. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC boosted its position in shares of American Express by 14.4% during the 1st quarter. Insight Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 8,977 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,679,000 after purchasing an additional 1,132 shares during the period. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC boosted its position in shares of American Express by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 7,486 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,400,000 after purchasing an additional 164 shares during the period. Finally, Carnegie Capital Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of American Express by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Carnegie Capital Asset Management LLC now owns 2,963 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $554,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the period. 85.49% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

In other American Express news, Director Theodore Leonsis sold 4,005 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $166.63, for a total transaction of $667,353.15. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 48,160 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.38, for a total transaction of $8,590,780.80. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 31,285 shares in the company, valued at $5,580,618.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.11% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Shares of AXP opened at $144.39 on Thursday. American Express has a twelve month low of $136.49 and a twelve month high of $199.55. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $164.82 and its 200-day simple moving average is $172.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $108.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.47, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.63, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71.

American Express (NYSE:AXP – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 22nd. The payment services company reported $2.73 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.43 by $0.30. American Express had a net margin of 17.49% and a return on equity of 33.35%. The firm had revenue of $11.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $11.66 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.74 EPS. American Express’s revenue for the quarter was up 29.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that American Express will post 9.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 10th. Investors of record on Friday, July 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 30th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.44%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 20.84%.

A number of research firms recently weighed in on AXP. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of American Express from $218.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, March 28th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of American Express from $195.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 25th. Edward Jones upgraded shares of American Express from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 6th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of American Express from $204.00 to $206.00 in a report on Thursday, March 17th. Finally, Wolfe Research lowered shares of American Express from an “outperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $213.00 to $146.00 in a report on Thursday, May 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, American Express currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $194.17.

About American Express (Get Rating)

American Express Company, together with its subsidiaries, provides charge and credit payment card products, and travel-related services worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Global Consumer Services Group, Global Commercial Services, and Global Merchant and Network Services. Its products and services include payment and financing products; network services; accounts payable expense management products and services; and travel and lifestyle services.

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