Janus Henderson Group PLC Sells 476,904 Shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Janus Henderson Group PLC lessened its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 12.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,483,938 shares of the payment services company's stock after selling 476,904 shares during the period. American Express makes up approximately 0.5% of Janus Henderson Group PLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. Janus Henderson Group PLC owned about 0.49% of American Express worth $1,034,032,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in American Express during the fourth quarter worth $523,000. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC NC grew its holdings in American Express by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC NC now owns 2,795 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $830,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in American Express by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Gotham Asset Management LLC now owns 14,521 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $4,310,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares during the period. Greenline Partners LLC acquired a new stake in American Express during the 4th quarter worth about $53,000. Finally, Focus Partners Wealth grew its stake in shares of American Express by 25.8% in the 4th quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 196,111 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $58,863,000 after buying an additional 40,249 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Express news, Director Michael J. Angelakis purchased 3,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were bought at an average price of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at $998,593. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Howard Grosfield sold 9,450 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.50, for a total transaction of $2,603,475.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 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. Company insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on AXP shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of American Express from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of American Express from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $265.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of American Express from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $270.00 to $255.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Argus cut shares of American Express from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. One analyst has 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $295.05.

American Express Stock Down 0.0%

NYSE AXP traded down $0.07 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $299.48. 2,958,954 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,838,715. American Express has a 52-week low of $220.43 and a 52-week high of $326.28. The firm has a market cap of $209.81 billion, a PE ratio of 21.38, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.23. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $265.31 and a 200 day simple moving average of $287.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.57.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.17. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. The firm had revenue of $16.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.33 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th were given a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.10%. This is a positive change from American Express's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 4th. American Express's payout ratio is 22.91%.

American Express 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.