Sprucegrove Investment Management Ltd. Sells 400 Shares of American Express Company $AXP

Sprucegrove Investment Management Ltd. reduced its position in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 44,990 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 400 shares during the quarter. American Express comprises approximately 1.2% of Sprucegrove Investment Management Ltd.’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Sprucegrove Investment Management Ltd.’s holdings in American Express were worth $14,351,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXP. Access Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the second quarter worth $26,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc acquired a new stake in American Express in the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Chung Wu Investment Group LLC acquired a new stake in American Express in the 2nd quarter worth about $37,000. Solstein Capital LLC bought a new stake in American Express in the 2nd quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Stock Performance

American Express stock opened at $365.95 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.59, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78. The stock has a market cap of $252.09 billion, a PE ratio of 24.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.29. American Express Company has a 12-month low of $220.43 and a 12-month high of $367.82. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $338.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $312.69.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 17th. The payment services company reported $4.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.98 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $18.43 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.03 billion. American Express had a net margin of 14.97% and a return on equity of 33.41%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.49 EPS. American Express has set its FY 2025 guidance at 15.200-15.500 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Investors of record on Friday, October 10th will be given a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 10th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 22.01%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Express news, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 112,272 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $329.86, for a total value of $37,034,041.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 92,810 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,614,306.60. This trade represents a 54.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Denise Pickett sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $350.73, for a total value of $1,753,650.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 7,726 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,709,739.98. This trade represents a 39.29% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 193,292 shares of company stock worth $65,363,878. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on AXP shares. BTIG Research lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $277.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, October 17th. DZ Bank upgraded American Express from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $340.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Compass Point reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $324.00 target price on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on American Express from $336.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, American Express currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $332.65.

American Express 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.