American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by 2Xideas AG

2Xideas AG reduced its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 26.0% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 53,780 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 18,893 shares during the quarter. American Express makes up 1.5% of 2Xideas AG’s holdings, making the stock its 20th largest holding. 2Xideas AG’s holdings in American Express were worth $12,245,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in American Express during the fourth quarter worth about $1,112,747,000. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd acquired a new stake in American Express during the first quarter valued at approximately $433,709,000. TD Asset Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of American Express by 62.1% in the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 2,399,494 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $449,521,000 after buying an additional 919,337 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of American Express by 1,313.2% in the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 768,769 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,440,210,000 after acquiring an additional 714,370 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 21.1% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,839,276 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $713,202,000 after purchasing an additional 667,695 shares during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of American Express from $265.00 to $267.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, June 10th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $250.00 target price on the stock. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, June 3rd. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on American Express from $167.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, HSBC raised their price objective on American Express from $232.00 to $239.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Express has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $230.70.

American Express Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE:AXP traded up $4.57 on Tuesday, reaching $252.46. The company had a trading volume of 2,498,580 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,006,196. The stock has a market capitalization of $179.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.80, a P/E/G ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.21. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $236.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $225.13. American Express has a twelve month low of $140.91 and a twelve month high of $253.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 19th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.26 by $0.23. American Express had a return on equity of 32.94% and a net margin of 15.53%. The firm had revenue of $16.33 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $16.60 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.89 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 9.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that American Express will post 13.24 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 9th. Investors of record on Friday, July 5th will be paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 5th. This is a positive change from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.11%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Anna Marrs sold 3,592 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.93, for a total value of $829,500.56. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 19,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,602,896.76. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Anna Marrs sold 3,592 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $230.93, for a total transaction of $829,500.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 19,932 shares in the company, valued at $4,602,896.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Quinn Jessica Lieberman sold 3,141 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $232.36, for a total transaction of $729,842.76. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 258 shares in the company, valued at approximately $59,948.88. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 138,844 shares of company stock worth $32,404,735 in the last quarter. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.