Vanguard Group Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in American Express Company $AXP

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in American Express by 0.2% in Q4 to 46,109,777 shares, representing about 6.69% of the company and valued at roughly $17.06 billion.
• American Express beat Q1 EPS estimates with $4.28 (vs. $4.01 expected), set FY2026 guidance of $17.30–$17.90 which investors viewed as cautious, and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.95 from $0.82.

Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 0.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 46,109,777 shares of the payment services company's stock after acquiring an additional 93,510 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 6.69% of American Express worth $17,058,312,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 24.4% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,481 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $1,924,000 after buying an additional 1,273 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of American Express by 13.0% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,738 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $554,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the 2nd quarter valued at $428,000. Howland Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter. Howland Capital Management LLC now owns 2,216 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $707,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Finally, HUB Investment Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 19.9% during the 2nd quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,898 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $924,000 after acquiring an additional 481 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of American Express stock opened at $314.08 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $215.39 billion, a PE ratio of 19.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.13. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $313.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $344.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a current ratio of 1.65. American Express Company has a 1 year low of $257.21 and a 1 year high of $387.49.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The payment services company reported $4.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.01 by $0.27. The business had revenue of $14.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.60 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.13% and a return on equity of 33.95%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.64 EPS. American Express has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.300-17.900 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that American Express Company will post 17.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 3rd will be paid a $0.95 dividend. This is a boost from American Express's previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 2nd. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. American Express's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.69%.

Insider Activity at American Express

In other news, insider Denise Pickett sold 23,385 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.91, for a total value of $8,346,340.35. Following the sale, the insider owned 7,754 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,767,480.14. This represents a 75.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 15,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.58, for a total transaction of $5,348,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 8,945 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,189,608.10. This trade represents a 62.64% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 73,944 shares of company stock worth $26,114,366. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting American Express

Here are the key news stories impacting American Express this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat on profit and revenue — AXP reported EPS of $4.28, above estimates, and revenue roughly $18.9B with cardmember spending the strongest in three years; these fundamentals underpin long-term earnings power. American Express beats profit estimates (Reuters)
• Positive Sentiment: Premium customer strength — Amex is seeing accelerated luxury and travel spending from affluent and younger cardholders, supporting fee income and premium-product growth. Cardholder spending picks up (MarketWatch)
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic commercial wins — New partnerships (including the NFL deal) and product expansion are cited as drivers of revenue growth and customer engagement. NFL deal boosts revenue (Benzinga)
• Positive Sentiment: Bullish analyst move — Bank of America raised its price target to $387 and kept a buy rating, signaling upside from current levels for longer-term holders. BofA raises AXP PT (Benzinga)
• Neutral Sentiment: AI/product tie-ups — Amex is embedding Resy into Anthropic’s Claude in a product partnership that could enhance customer experience but is not an immediate earnings driver. Resy-Anthropic pact (Seeking Alpha)
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed analyst commentary — Several outlets note AXP as a quality core holding (RBC) even as some firms debate relative upside vs. growth-oriented payments names; this leaves consensus views split. RBC view (Yahoo Finance)
• Negative Sentiment: Cautious FY2026 outlook — Management set EPS guidance of $17.30–$17.90, slightly below consensus, which traders interpreted as guidance conservatism and capped upside. Q1 beat but cautious outlook (Benzinga)
• Negative Sentiment: Higher investment and expense plans — Management flagged increased strategic spending (technology, marketing), which pressured near-term margins and contributed to the weak market reaction. Spending plans raise concern (Proactive Investors)
• Negative Sentiment: Bearish analyst moves — BTIG reaffirmed a sell rating with a $285 PT and JPMorgan previously trimmed its target; these calls add downward pressure and reduce near-term conviction. BTIG sell, JPMorgan cut (Benzinga/InsiderMonkey)
• Negative Sentiment: Macro/geopolitical caution — Middle East tensions and softer futures dampened overall market appetite for cyclicals, amplifying the stock’s decline despite good quarter-level results. Geopolitics weigh on markets (Zacks)

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on AXP. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of American Express from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Evercore set a $393.00 target price on shares of American Express in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. TD Cowen restated a "hold" rating on shares of American Express in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of American Express from $425.00 to $415.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on shares of American Express from $323.00 to $322.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $361.05.

About American Express

American Express is a global financial services company primarily known for its payment card products, travel services and merchant network. Founded in 1850 as an express mail business, the company evolved through the 20th century into a payments and travel-focused organization. Its core activities include issuing consumer and commercial charge and credit cards, operating a global card acceptance and processing network, and providing travel-related services and customer loyalty programs.

American Express issues a range of products for individuals, small businesses and large corporations, including personal cards, business and corporate cards, and co‑brand partnerships with airlines, hotels and retailers.

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