American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by Gryphon Financial Partners LLC

Gryphon Financial Partners LLC trimmed its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 10.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,150 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 134 shares during the period. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $341,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new stake in American Express in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC boosted its holdings in American Express by 332.0% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in American Express during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total transaction of $4,765,295.26. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,492,492.04. This trade represents a 38.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total value of $3,027,327.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 13,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,308,795. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

American Express Trading Down 1.9 %

American Express stock opened at $295.12 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $307.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $287.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The stock has a market cap of $207.33 billion, a PE ratio of 21.06, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.24. American Express has a 52 week low of $214.51 and a 52 week high of $326.27.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released 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 research analysts predict that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a $0.82 dividend. This is a positive change from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.11%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AXP has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. BTIG Research boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Compass Point dropped their target price on shares of American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $296.38.

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.