Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund Increases Stock Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund lifted its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 554.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 229,000 shares of the payment services company's stock after purchasing an additional 194,000 shares during the quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund's holdings in American Express were worth $62,105,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in American Express in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new position in shares of American Express during the third quarter valued at about $29,000. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. boosted its holdings in American Express by 42.2% during the second quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. now owns 165 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC bought a new stake in American Express in the 2nd quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Founders Capital Management bought a new stake in American Express in the 2nd quarter worth about $46,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American Express Price Performance

NYSE AXP traded down $1.29 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $304.28. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,697,028 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,894,898. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $277.77 and a 200 day moving average of $254.26. American Express has a one year low of $163.61 and a one year high of $307.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $214.35 billion, a PE ratio of 22.49, a P/E/G ratio of 1.75 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.80, a current ratio of 1.63 and a quick ratio of 1.63.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, October 18th. The payment services company reported $3.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.27 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $16.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $16.68 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 32.46%. American Express's revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $3.30 earnings per share. Analysts expect that American Express will post 13.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 4th were given a dividend of $0.70 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 4th. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.92%. American Express's payout ratio is 20.60%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on AXP shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut American Express from an "overweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $268.00 to $286.00 in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of American Express from $275.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of American Express from $260.00 to $268.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of American Express from $285.00 to $300.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Finally, BTIG Research downgraded American Express from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and set a $230.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $253.09.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In related news, insider Anre D. Williams sold 77,887 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.26, for a total value of $21,049,740.62. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 111,656 shares of the company's stock, valued at $30,176,150.56. The trade was a 41.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Vice Chairman Douglas E. Buckminster sold 13,111 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $270.98, for a total transaction of $3,552,818.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 109,691 shares in the company, valued at $29,724,067.18. The trade was a 10.68 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.11% of the company's stock.

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.