Deutsche Bank AG Acquires 555,562 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Deutsche Bank AG grew its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 25.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,698,632 shares of the payment services company's stock after buying an additional 555,562 shares during the quarter. Deutsche Bank AG owned 0.38% of American Express worth $800,927,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in American Express during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,785,867,000. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main increased its stake in American Express by 463.3% during the fourth quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 4,357,487 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $1,293,259,000 after acquiring an additional 3,583,959 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in American Express by 186.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,986,710 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $886,426,000 after purchasing an additional 1,943,463 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its holdings in American Express by 346.2% in the fourth quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 2,021,873 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $600,072,000 after purchasing an additional 1,568,747 shares during the period. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in American Express by 36,719.1% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,011,790 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $300,289,000 after buying an additional 1,009,042 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at American Express

In related news, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 3,019 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,889,822.54. This trade represents a 21.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis acquired 3,700 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were bought at an average price of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $998,593. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on AXP. Redburn Atlantic raised American Express from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $270.00 to $255.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of American Express from $244.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Argus lowered American Express from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, BTIG Research dropped their price target on American Express from $272.00 to $240.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $295.05.

American Express Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of NYSE:AXP traded up $3.53 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $302.45. 1,504,637 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,147,212. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $263.48 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $287.44. American Express has a 12-month low of $220.43 and a 12-month high of $326.27. The stock has a market cap of $211.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.23.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $16.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.04 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.33 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th were given a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.08%. This is an increase from American Express's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. American Express's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 22.91%.

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.