Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Increases Stock Position in American Express Company $AXP

Key Points

• Zurcher Kantonalbank increased its stake in American Express by 11.8% in Q4 and now owns 322,814 shares valued at approximately $119.43 million.
• American Express raised its quarterly dividend to $0.95 (annualized $3.80, yield 1.1%), payable May 8 with an ex-dividend date of April 2, up from $0.82 previously.
• AXP reported Q4 EPS of $3.53, missing estimates by $0.01 while revenue rose 10.5% year-over-year, and the company set FY2026 EPS guidance of $17.30–$17.90 (analysts expect ~15.33).

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its stake in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 11.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 322,814 shares of the payment services company's stock after purchasing an additional 33,979 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank's holdings in American Express were worth $119,425,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. boosted its position in shares of American Express by 153.3% during the 3rd quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 76 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of American Express during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC bought a new position in shares of American Express during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Guerra Advisors Inc bought a new position in shares of American Express during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of American Express by 210.7% during the 3rd quarter. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company's stock.

American Express Stock Down 0.1%

NYSE:AXP opened at $331.47 on Monday. American Express Company has a twelve month low of $239.27 and a twelve month high of $387.49. The company has a market cap of $227.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.13. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $316.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $344.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The payment services company reported $3.53 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.54 by ($0.01). American Express had a return on equity of 33.49% and a net margin of 15.00%.The business had revenue of ($17,139.00) million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.91 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.04 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 10.5% compared to the same quarter last year. American Express has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.300-17.900 EPS. Analysts anticipate that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. This is a positive change from American Express's previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 2nd. American Express's dividend payout ratio is 24.69%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Evercore set a $393.00 target price on American Express in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on American Express from $425.00 to $415.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Truist Financial lowered their target price on American Express from $400.00 to $360.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $395.00 target price on shares of American Express in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Credit Suisse Group set a $328.00 target price on American Express in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $350.70.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Anna Marrs sold 27,425 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $350.01, for a total transaction of $9,599,024.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 20,394 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,138,103.94. This trade represents a 57.35% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Howard Grosfield sold 8,134 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $346.73, for a total value of $2,820,301.82. Following the sale, the insider owned 9,433 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,270,704.09. This trade represents a 46.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 73,944 shares of company stock valued at $26,114,366 in the last three months. 0.14% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

American Express Profile

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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