Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co Increases Position in American Express Company $AXP

Key Points

• Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co increased its stake in American Express by 12.8%, owning 9,167 shares valued at approximately $2.47 million.
• American Express reported $4.08 EPS for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' expectations of $3.86 and achieving a revenue of $17.86 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.82 per share, with a dividend yield of 1.0%.

Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co lifted its stake in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 12.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,167 shares of the payment services company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,037 shares during the quarter. Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co's holdings in American Express were worth $2,466,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. boosted its stake in American Express by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. now owns 772 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $208,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management raised its holdings in American Express by 4.8% in the 1st quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management now owns 792 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $213,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares during the last quarter. Hemington Wealth Management raised its holdings in American Express by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 1,661 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $446,000 after acquiring an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in American Express by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,620 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $436,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its holdings in American Express by 0.8% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 5,236 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $1,362,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other American Express news, insider Laureen Seeger sold 61,721 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.47, for a total transaction of $18,360,145.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 9,001 shares in the company, valued at $2,677,527.47. This trade represents a 87.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Stephen J. Squeri sold 112,272 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief executive officer owned 92,810 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $30,614,306.60. This represents a 54.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 269,996 shares of company stock valued at $85,261,270 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $327.00 price objective (up from $300.00) on shares of American Express in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. BTIG Research set a $277.00 price target on American Express and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Barclays increased their price target on American Express from $249.00 to $297.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of American Express from $335.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $313.45.

American Express Price Performance

AXP stock traded down $3.84 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $325.48. The company had a trading volume of 1,999,904 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,883,120. The company has a market capitalization of $226.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.84, a P/E/G ratio of 1.71 and a beta of 1.28. American Express Company has a 12-month low of $220.43 and a 12-month high of $332.46. The company has a quick ratio of 1.60, a current ratio of 1.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $313.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $291.71.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The payment services company reported $4.08 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.86 by $0.22. The business 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 quarterly revenue was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.49 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd were given a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 3rd. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. American Express's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.02%.

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.