Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Cuts Stock Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp lessened its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 5.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. 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 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AXP. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in American Express by 36,719.1% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,011,790 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $300,289,000 after buying an additional 1,009,042 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter worth approximately $292,081,000. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of American Express by 8.5% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,003,715 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $2,984,208,000 after purchasing an additional 866,110 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 35,213.7% in the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 317,117 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $86,002,000 after purchasing an additional 316,219 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI raised its position in American Express by 73.7% in the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 707,381 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $191,842,000 after purchasing an additional 300,138 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Insider Activity

In related news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at $7,492,492.04. This represents a 38.88 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis acquired 3,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 3,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at $998,593. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AXP has been the subject of several research analyst reports. BTIG Research raised their price target on American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, January 27th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Argus lowered shares of American Express from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their target price on shares of American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $302.57.

American Express Stock Down 2.6 %

AXP stock traded down $7.19 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $264.84. 1,795,479 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,795,794. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $295.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $289.03. American Express has a 1-year low of $214.51 and a 1-year high of $326.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.58. The company has a market cap of $186.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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%. On average, equities analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be paid a $0.82 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.24%. This is a boost from American Express's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. American Express's payout ratio is currently 23.41%.

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.