Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Grows Stock Holdings in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP)

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd raised its holdings in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 5.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 331,849 shares of the payment services company's stock after acquiring an additional 16,588 shares during the quarter. American Express makes up about 0.9% of Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd's holdings in American Express were worth $89,284,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of AXP. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in American Express during the first quarter worth $29,000. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in American Express in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Nexus Investment Management ULC bought a new stake in shares of American Express during the 1st quarter worth $34,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on AXP shares. Redburn Atlantic raised American Express from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $270.00 to $255.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Robert W. Baird raised shares of American Express from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $265.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Bank of America raised American Express from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $325.00 to $274.00 in a research note on Friday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $244.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, BTIG Research dropped their target price on shares of American Express from $272.00 to $240.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $295.25.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In related news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 9,450 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.50, for a total value of $2,603,475.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 9,402 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,590,251. This represents a 50.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 3,019 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.66, for a total transaction of $799,008.54. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 10,919 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,889,822.54. The trade was a 21.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AXP traded up $3.30 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $325.83. The company had a trading volume of 3,040,132 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,842,878. The company has a market cap of $228.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.75, a PEG ratio of 1.57 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The company has a fifty day moving average of $291.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $289.23. American Express Company has a 12-month low of $220.43 and a 12-month high of $326.58.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.17. American Express had a net margin of 15.31% and a return on equity of 32.48%. The business had revenue of $16.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.04 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.33 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be given a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 3rd. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.01%. American Express's dividend payout ratio 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.