American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp decreased its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 5.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 339,583 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 18,840 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp’s holdings in American Express were worth $100,785,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Florida Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 24.7% during the 4th quarter. Florida Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,235 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $367,000 after acquiring an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. Aire Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of American Express by 10.1% during the 4th quarter. Aire Advisors LLC now owns 1,607 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $477,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. raised its position in shares of American Express by 11.0% during the 4th quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 47,862 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $14,205,000 after purchasing an additional 4,739 shares during the last quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. lifted its stake in American Express by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 1,510 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $448,000 after buying an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FineMark National Bank & Trust grew its holdings in American Express by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. FineMark National Bank & Trust now owns 8,811 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,615,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total value of $4,765,295.26. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 23,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,492,492.04. This trade represents a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of American Express 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 trade 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 company insiders.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of AXP opened at $277.98 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $195.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $297.92 and its 200-day moving average is $288.99. American Express has a one year low of $214.51 and a one 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) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. Equities analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be issued a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.18%. This is a boost from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.41%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Argus lowered American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Compass Point reduced their price target on American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on American Express from $367.00 to $330.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on American Express from $330.00 to $350.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, American Express presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $302.57.

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.