American Express (NYSE:AXP) Position Boosted by Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado

Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado grew its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 9.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 926,363 shares of the payment services company's stock after purchasing an additional 76,470 shares during the quarter. American Express makes up about 1.1% of Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado's portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado owned approximately 0.13% of American Express worth $274,935,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXP. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new position in American Express in the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in American Express during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in American Express during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in American Express during the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company's stock.

American Express Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE AXP traded down $0.41 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $266.61. 3,521,196 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,832,828. The stock has a market capitalization of $186.78 billion, a PE ratio of 19.03, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.16. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $266.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $287.11. American Express has a 1-year low of $220.43 and a 1-year high of $326.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.58.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.47 by $0.17. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. The company had revenue of $16.97 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.04 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.33 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.23%. This is a boost from American Express's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. American Express's dividend payout ratio is presently 22.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on AXP shares. Compass Point cut their price target on shares of American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of American Express from $340.00 to $315.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $310.00 price target on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Argus lowered 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 price target on shares of American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $295.05.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Michael J. Angelakis purchased 3,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at $998,593. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 3,019 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,919 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,889,822.54. The trade was a 21.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate 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.