American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by Mediolanum International Funds Ltd

Key Points

• Mediolanum International Funds Ltd reduced its holdings in American Express by 18.7%, selling 27,899 shares to hold a total of 121,392 shares valued at approximately $32.2 million.
• Several large investors significantly increased their positions in American Express, including DZ BANK AG, which boosted its holdings by 463.3%, and GAMMA Investing LLC, which increased its stake by an astonishing 27,625.2%.
• American Express recently reported quarterly earnings of $4.08 per share, surpassing analyst expectations, and announced a $0.82 quarterly dividend with a yield of 1.05%.

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd reduced its position in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 18.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 121,392 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 27,899 shares during the quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd's holdings in American Express were worth $32,227,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AXP. Nvwm LLC raised its stake in shares of American Express by 1.4% in the first quarter. Nvwm LLC now owns 15,264 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $4,107,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares during the last quarter. Bell & Brown Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 0.7% during the first quarter. Bell & Brown Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 14,681 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $3,950,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Phoenix Financial Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the first quarter valued at approximately $230,000. Westover Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 4.4% during the first quarter. Westover Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,482 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $399,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rothschild & Co Wealth Management UK Ltd increased its position in shares of American Express by 0.4% during the first quarter. Rothschild & Co Wealth Management UK Ltd now owns 2,775,682 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $746,797,000 after acquiring an additional 11,014 shares during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In other American Express 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 completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 10,919 shares in the company, valued at $2,889,822.54. This trade represents a 21.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Howard Grosfield sold 9,450 shares of the business'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 sale, the insider owned 9,402 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,590,251. The trade was a 50.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on AXP shares. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on American Express from $250.00 to $311.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $327.00 price objective on American Express in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, July 14th. Barclays increased their price objective on American Express from $249.00 to $297.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered American Express from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $311.05.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of NYSE AXP traded down $0.96 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $310.65. 1,652,950 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,991,678. The company's 50-day moving average is $304.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $291.20. 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 company has a market capitalization of $216.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.80, a PEG ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 1.25. American Express Company has a 1 year low of $220.43 and a 1 year high of $329.14.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The payment services company reported $4.08 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.86 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $17.86 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.70 billion. American Express had a net margin of 14.78% and a return on equity of 32.87%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.49 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be paid a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 3rd. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.06%. American Express's dividend payout ratio is currently 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.