Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Takes Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 170,400 shares of the payment services company’s stock, valued at approximately $50,679,000.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. IHT Wealth Management LLC grew its position in American Express by 9.0% during the third quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,140 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,392,000 after buying an additional 426 shares during the period. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. now owns 239,011 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $64,820,000 after acquiring an additional 3,912 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its holdings in shares of American Express by 22.9% in the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 36,411 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $9,875,000 after acquiring an additional 6,789 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp increased its stake in American Express by 9.2% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 615,554 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $166,959,000 after purchasing an additional 51,615 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Weiss Asset Management LP acquired a new position in American Express during the third quarter worth $4,907,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

AXP stock opened at $233.50 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $164.04 billion, a PE ratio of 16.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.16. 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 stock has a 50-day moving average price of $288.96 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $289.28. American Express has a 12-month low of $214.51 and a 12-month high of $326.28.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, research analysts predict that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors 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 yield of 1.40%. 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 23.41%.

Insider Activity at American Express

In other news, Director Michael J. Angelakis acquired 3,700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $998,593. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total transaction of $4,765,295.26. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 23,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,492,492.04. The trade was a 38.88 % 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.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on AXP shares. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of American Express from $320.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 24th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on American Express from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Compass Point dropped their price target on American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Express has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $302.24.

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.