Mufg Securities Americas Inc. Invests $2.44 Million in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Mufg Securities Americas Inc. bought a new stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund bought 8,216 shares of the payment services company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,438,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,785,867,000. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main grew its position in 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 valued at $1,293,259,000 after acquiring an additional 3,583,959 shares during the period. Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in American Express by 186.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,986,710 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $886,426,000 after acquiring an additional 1,943,463 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 346.2% during the fourth quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 2,021,873 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $600,072,000 after acquiring an additional 1,568,747 shares during the period. Finally, Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Express by 36,719.1% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,011,790 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $300,289,000 after acquiring an additional 1,009,042 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Express news, insider Glenda G. Mcneal sold 3,019 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $264.66, for a total transaction of $799,008.54. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 10,919 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,889,822.54. This trade represents a 21.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Howard Grosfield sold 9,450 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.50, for a total value of $2,603,475.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 9,402 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $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. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

American Express Stock Up 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:AXP opened at $302.28 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The stock has a market cap of $211.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a 50 day moving average of $264.02 and a 200-day moving average of $287.55. American Express has a one year low of $220.43 and a one year high of $326.28.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $16.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.04 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.33 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th were paid a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 4th. 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 1.09%. American Express’s payout ratio is 22.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Redburn Atlantic raised shares of American Express from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $270.00 to $255.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. StockNews.com cut shares of American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on shares of American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, BTIG Research decreased their price target on American Express from $272.00 to $240.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $295.05.

American Express Company 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.