Russell Investments Group Ltd. reduced its position in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 2.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 599,438 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 13,096 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.09% of American Express worth $161,074,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in American Express during the first quarter valued at approximately $1,454,667,000. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main lifted its position in American Express by 463.3% during the fourth quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 4,357,487 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $1,293,259,000 after purchasing an additional 3,583,959 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in American Express by 27,625.2% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,162,846 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $581,914,000 after purchasing an additional 2,155,045 shares during the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its position in American Express by 186.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,986,710 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $886,426,000 after purchasing an additional 1,943,463 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of American Express by 346.2% during the fourth quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 2,021,873 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $600,072,000 after acquiring an additional 1,568,747 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
American Express Stock Performance
AXP traded down $2.37 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $305.36. 2,726,998 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,945,069. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $212.49 billion, a PE ratio of 21.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.28. The company's 50-day moving average is $307.17 and its 200 day moving average is $290.42. American Express Company has a 52 week low of $220.43 and a 52 week high of $329.14.
American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 18th. The payment services company reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 revenue for the quarter was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.49 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.
American Express Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 8th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 3rd were given a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 3rd. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. American Express's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.02%.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other American Express news, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $309.50, for a total value of $15,475,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 10,957 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,391,191.50. This trade represents a 82.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Laureen Seeger sold 61,721 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was 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. The trade was a 87.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 134,219 shares of company stock worth $40,555,901. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.
Analyst Ratings Changes
AXP has been the topic of several research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $360.00 to $371.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of American Express from $371.00 to $375.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Wells Fargo & Company set a $327.00 price target on shares of American Express in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. BTIG Research set a $277.00 price target on shares of American Express and gave the company a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, DZ Bank lowered shares of American Express from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Monday, July 21st. Two 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $311.05.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on American Express
American Express Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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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