American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by Piscataqua Savings Bank

Piscataqua Savings Bank cut its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 4.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,509 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 304 shares during the quarter. American Express comprises 1.5% of Piscataqua Savings Bank’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Piscataqua Savings Bank’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,751,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AXP. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new position in American Express during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Curio Wealth LLC acquired a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Nexus Investment Management ULC acquired a new position in American Express in the 1st quarter valued at about $34,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $244.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, April 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on American Express from $367.00 to $330.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Baird R W raised American Express from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Argus lowered American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, American Express presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $296.05.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 3,019 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.66, for a total value of $799,008.54. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 10,919 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,889,822.54. This trade represents a 21.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Howard Grosfield sold 9,450 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.50, for a total value of $2,603,475.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 9,402 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,590,251. The trade was a 50.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Up 2.3%

Shares of AXP opened at $302.71 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $212.08 billion, a PE ratio of 21.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.25. American Express has a 1 year low of $220.43 and a 1 year high of $326.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.58. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $273.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $289.09.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.17. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. The company had revenue of $16.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.33 EPS. Analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.