Sandy Spring Bank Cuts Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Sandy Spring Bank lessened its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 2.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 50,705 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 1,181 shares during the period. Sandy Spring Bank’s holdings in American Express were worth $15,049,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AXP. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in American Express by 36,719.1% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,011,790 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $300,289,000 after buying an additional 1,009,042 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter worth approximately $292,081,000. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 8.5% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,003,715 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,984,208,000 after purchasing an additional 866,110 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 35,213.7% in the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 317,117 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $86,002,000 after purchasing an additional 316,219 shares in the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 73.7% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 707,381 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $191,842,000 after purchasing an additional 300,138 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total value of $4,765,295.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at $7,492,492.04. This trade represents a 38.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis purchased 3,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at $998,593. This represents a ? increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, January 27th. HSBC upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com cut shares of American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $301.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $303.52.

American Express Stock Up 3.0 %

Shares of NYSE AXP opened at $270.66 on Thursday. 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 has a 12 month low of $214.51 and a 12 month high of $326.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $190.15 billion, a PE ratio of 19.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $299.41 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $288.35.

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

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th will be paid a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.21%. This is a positive change from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.41%.

About American Express

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.