170,000 Shares in American Express (NYSE:AXP) Bought by Nearwater Capital Markets Ltd

Nearwater Capital Markets Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 170,000 shares of the payment services company's stock, valued at approximately $50,454,000. American Express makes up 1.4% of Nearwater Capital Markets Ltd's investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest position.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in American Express by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,752,084 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $3,484,312,000 after purchasing an additional 268,572 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Express by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,761,336 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $2,600,277,000 after buying an additional 95,927 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of American Express by 16.3% in the fourth 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. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter worth about $1,785,867,000. Finally, DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main increased its holdings in shares of American Express by 463.3% in 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 worth $1,293,259,000 after buying an additional 3,583,959 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on AXP. Redburn Atlantic upgraded American Express from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $270.00 to $255.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Citigroup decreased their price objective on American Express from $320.00 to $300.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on American Express from $244.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. BTIG Research decreased their price objective on American Express from $272.00 to $240.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, William Blair reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, April 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $295.05.

American Express Stock Down 0.0%

American Express stock traded down $0.07 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $299.48. 2,958,967 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,838,859. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $266.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $288.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The company 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. American Express has a one year low of $220.43 and a one year high of $326.28.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last issued 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 return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. The firm had revenue of $16.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.33 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th were given a $0.82 dividend. This is a boost from American Express's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 4th. American Express's payout ratio is currently 22.91%.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In related news, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 3,019 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $264.66, for a total value of $799,008.54. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,919 shares in the company, valued at $2,889,822.54. The trade was a 21.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Howard Grosfield sold 9,450 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.50, for a total transaction of $2,603,475.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 9,402 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,590,251. The trade was a 50.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.20% of the company's stock.

About American Express

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.