E Fund Management Co. Ltd. Boosts Stock Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

E Fund Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 65.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,378 shares of the payment services company’s stock after buying an additional 543 shares during the period. E Fund Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in American Express were worth $409,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Candriam S.C.A. boosted its holdings in shares of American Express by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 340,965 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $101,195,000 after purchasing an additional 4,723 shares during the period. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth about $396,000. Ethos Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth about $216,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Express by 29.2% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 3,659 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,086,000 after purchasing an additional 826 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth about $292,081,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total value of $4,765,295.26. Following the sale, the insider now owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,492,492.04. This trade represents a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total transaction of $3,027,327.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at $4,308,795. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

American Express Trading Down 0.9 %

NYSE:AXP opened at $273.13 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $305.44 and its 200-day moving average price is $287.87. American Express has a 52 week low of $214.51 and a 52 week high of $326.27. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The stock has a market cap of $191.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.50, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. This is a boost from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.20%. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.41%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AXP has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their target price on shares of American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of American Express from $301.00 to $307.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Compass Point decreased their price target on shares of American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of American Express from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $296.38.

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.