Achmea Investment Management B.V. Has $35.16 Million Stock Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Achmea Investment Management B.V. increased its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 91.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 118,476 shares of the payment services company's stock after buying an additional 56,525 shares during the quarter. Achmea Investment Management B.V.'s holdings in American Express were worth $35,162,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new position in American Express during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its stake in American Express by 332.0% during the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the period. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new position in American Express during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Financial Life Planners acquired a new position in American Express during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in American Express during the 4th quarter worth approximately $40,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Price Performance

American Express stock opened at $261.19 on Thursday. American Express has a 12 month low of $214.51 and a 12 month high of $326.27. 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 business's 50 day simple moving average is $303.18 and its 200 day simple moving average is $288.10. The company has a market cap of $183.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.64, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21.

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American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 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%. Sell-side analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.26%. This is an increase from American Express's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. American Express's dividend payout ratio is currently 23.41%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Michael J. Angelakis bought 3,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $998,593. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total value of $3,027,327.45. Following the sale, the insider now owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,308,795. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on AXP shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on American Express from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group boosted their price objective on American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. HSBC boosted their price objective on American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Compass Point decreased their price objective on American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Three 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express 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.

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