Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. Raises Stock Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. raised its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 4.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,892 shares of the payment services company’s stock after buying an additional 86 shares during the period. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A.’s holdings in American Express were worth $562,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in American Express by 0.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,483,512 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $3,104,735,000 after acquiring an additional 86,100 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of American Express by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,761,336 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,600,277,000 after purchasing an additional 95,927 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,785,867,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in shares of American Express by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,960,842 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,074,168,000 after purchasing an additional 33,193 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of American Express by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,878,434 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,151,080,000 after buying an additional 14,282 shares during the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of American Express stock opened at $270.31 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $293.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $289.86. American Express has a one year low of $214.51 and a one year high of $326.28. The stock has a market cap of $189.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21. 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) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share 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%. Equities analysts expect that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This is a positive change from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. American Express’s payout ratio is 23.41%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on AXP. Argus downgraded shares of American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on American Express from $301.00 to $307.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. StockNews.com cut American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of American Express from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $302.57.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total value of $3,027,327.45. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,308,795. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis acquired 3,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were bought at an average price of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at $998,593. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

American Express 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.