Northern Financial Advisors Inc Trims Stake in American Express Company $AXP

Northern Financial Advisors Inc trimmed its stake in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,788 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 89 shares during the period. American Express accounts for approximately 2.1% of Northern Financial Advisors Inc’s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest position. Northern Financial Advisors Inc’s holdings in American Express were worth $2,803,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in American Express by 5.5% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 680,308 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $183,037,000 after buying an additional 35,295 shares during the period. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc boosted its holdings in American Express by 1.4% in the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc now owns 167,534 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $45,243,000 after buying an additional 2,259 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in American Express in the 1st quarter worth $509,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in American Express by 6.4% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 94,458 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $25,088,000 after buying an additional 5,693 shares during the period. Finally, Navis Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in American Express by 368.7% in the 1st quarter. Navis Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,548 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $955,000 after buying an additional 2,791 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of NYSE AXP opened at $327.61 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $320.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $299.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $227.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.29. American Express Company has a 12-month low of $220.43 and a 12-month high of $349.19.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The payment services company reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.86 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $17.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.70 billion. American Express had a net margin of 14.78% and a return on equity of 32.87%. The business’s revenue was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.49 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.02%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Laureen Seeger sold 16,998 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $294.83, for a total value of $5,011,520.34. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 9,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,653,764.83. This represents a 65.38% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $309.50, for a total transaction of $15,475,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 10,957 shares in the company, valued at $3,391,191.50. This trade represents a 82.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 269,996 shares of company stock worth $85,261,270. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AXP has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of American Express from $350.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of American Express from $371.00 to $394.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, July 14th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of American Express from $297.00 to $336.00 and gave the company a “cautious” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of American Express from $348.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 15th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, American Express currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $323.55.

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.