Hancock Whitney Corp Cuts Stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Hancock Whitney Corp trimmed its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 0.3% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 72,373 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 198 shares during the period. Hancock Whitney Corp’s holdings in American Express were worth $19,628,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in American Express in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 42.2% in the second quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. now owns 165 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the period. POM Investment Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the second quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Founders Capital Management purchased a new stake in American Express during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

AXP opened at $304.74 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $276.08 and a 200-day moving average of $253.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.63 and a current ratio of 1.63. American Express has a 52-week low of $163.32 and a 52-week high of $304.74. The company has a market cap of $214.67 billion, a PE ratio of 22.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.22. American Express had a return on equity of 32.46% and a net margin of 15.32%. The company had revenue of $16.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.68 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.30 earnings per share. American Express’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that American Express will post 13.4 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Investors of record on Friday, October 4th were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 4th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.92%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.60%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other news, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $270.26, for a total transaction of $21,049,740.62. Following the sale, the insider now owns 111,656 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,176,150.56. This represents a 41.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.98, for a total transaction of $3,552,818.78. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 109,691 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,724,067.18. The trade was a 10.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on AXP. BTIG Research downgraded American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and set a $230.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on American Express from $270.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of American Express from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their price target on American Express from $265.00 to $300.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $248.00 to $252.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $253.09.

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.