Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super Grows Position in American Express Company $AXP

Key Points

• Aware Super Pty Ltd increased its stake in American Express by 100% during the 2nd quarter, now holding 163,772 shares valued at $48.15 million.
• American Express reported $4.08 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $3.86 and showcasing a 9.3% year-over-year revenue increase.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.82, with a yield of 1.0%, to be paid on November 10th to shareholders of record as of October 10th.

Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super boosted its stake in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 100.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 163,772 shares of the payment services company's stock after purchasing an additional 81,886 shares during the period. American Express makes up about 0.7% of Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super's portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super's holdings in American Express were worth $48,151,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in American Express by 2.8% during the second quarter. Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,191 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $384,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. DLK Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 3.8% in the second quarter. DLK Investment Management LLC now owns 869 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $277,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the period. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 4.7% in the first quarter. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. now owns 772 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $208,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Modern Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 0.7% in the first quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,921 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $1,324,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Finally, Greenfield Savings Bank lifted its stake in American Express by 0.3% in the second quarter. Greenfield Savings Bank now owns 13,116 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $4,184,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company's stock.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of American Express stock opened at $330.75 on Thursday. American Express Company has a 12 month low of $220.43 and a 12 month high of $349.19. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $324.08 and its 200-day simple moving average is $301.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 1.61 and a quick ratio of 1.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $230.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.21, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.29.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 18th. The payment services company reported $4.08 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.86 by $0.22. American Express had a return on equity of 32.87% and a net margin of 14.78%.The company had revenue of $17.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.70 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.49 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 10th will be paid a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 10th. American Express's payout ratio is currently 23.02%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on AXP. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $350.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, September 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on American Express from $371.00 to $394.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on American Express from $371.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $327.00 target price (up from $300.00) on shares of American Express in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on American Express from $330.00 to $365.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 30th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $323.60.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Express news, insider Laureen Seeger sold 61,721 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $297.47, for a total value of $18,360,145.87. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 9,001 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,677,527.47. The trade was a 87.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 23,505 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $326.37, for a total transaction of $7,671,326.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 123,613 shares in the company, valued at $40,343,574.81. This represents a 15.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 269,996 shares of company stock worth $85,261,270 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

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.

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