Meeder Asset Management Inc. Has $5.31 Million Holdings in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP)

Key Points

• Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in American Express by 631.6%, owning 19,739 shares valued at approximately $5.31 million as of its latest SEC filing.
• American Express reported a quarterly EPS of $4.08, surpassing estimates, with revenue reaching $17.86 billion, a 9.3% increase from the previous year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.82 per share, contributing to an annualized dividend yield of 1.06%, with a current payout ratio of 23.02%.

Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 631.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,739 shares of the payment services company's stock after purchasing an additional 17,041 shares during the quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in American Express were worth $5,311,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main raised its position in shares of American Express by 463.3% in the 4th 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 buying an additional 3,583,959 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of American Express by 27,625.2% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,162,846 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $581,914,000 after buying an additional 2,155,045 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors raised its position in shares of American Express by 186.3% in the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,986,710 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $886,426,000 after buying an additional 1,943,463 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its position in shares of American Express by 346.2% in the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 2,021,873 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $600,072,000 after buying an additional 1,568,747 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its position in shares of American Express by 16.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,825,135 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $2,025,632,000 after buying an additional 955,811 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company's stock.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of AXP traded down $5.53 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $293.78. 1,725,705 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,973,293. The business's 50-day moving average price is $305.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $291.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $204.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.61 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a current ratio of 1.61. American Express Company has a 12 month low of $220.43 and a 12 month high of $329.14.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The payment services company reported $4.08 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.86 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $17.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.70 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 32.87% and a net margin of 14.78%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.49 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd will be issued a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 3rd. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. American Express's dividend payout ratio is currently 23.02%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other American Express news, insider Anna Marrs sold 5,500 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $310.77, for a total transaction of $1,709,235.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 20,311 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,312,049.47. The trade was a 21.31% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 50,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.50, for a total transaction of $15,475,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 10,957 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,391,191.50. This represents a 82.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 64,950 shares of company stock valued at $19,787,710. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on AXP. Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered American Express from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded American Express from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $270.00 to $255.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $327.00 price target (up from $300.00) on shares of American Express in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on American Express from $371.00 to $375.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, DZ Bank downgraded American Express from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $311.05.

American Express Company 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.