Norinchukin Bank The Grows Stock Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Norinchukin Bank The grew its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP - Free Report) by 4.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 35,345 shares of the payment services company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,393 shares during the period. Norinchukin Bank The's holdings in American Express were worth $10,490,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in AXP. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,785,867,000. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its holdings in American Express by 186.3% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 2,986,710 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $886,426,000 after buying an additional 1,943,463 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC grew its position in shares of American Express by 36,719.1% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,011,790 shares of the payment services company's stock worth $300,289,000 after acquiring an additional 1,009,042 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of American Express in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $292,081,000. Finally, APG Asset Management N.V. raised its position in shares of American Express by 538.7% during the 4th quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. now owns 355,888 shares of the payment services company's stock valued at $102,003,000 after acquiring an additional 300,168 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Michael J. Angelakis bought 3,700 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at $998,593. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of American Express stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 13,500 shares of the company's stock, 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. 0.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on AXP shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of American Express from $350.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Argus lowered American Express from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. William Blair reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday. UBS Group raised their price target on American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Baird R W raised shares of American Express from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $295.05.

American Express Trading Up 2.7 %

NYSE:AXP traded up $7.03 on Thursday, reaching $267.17. 1,725,080 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,854,684. The company's 50 day moving average is $269.48 and its 200-day moving average is $287.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $187.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.16. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. American Express has a 1-year low of $220.43 and a 1-year high of $326.28.

American Express (NYSE:AXP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The payment services company reported $3.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.47 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $16.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.04 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.33 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current fiscal 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 issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. This is a boost from American Express's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.23%. American Express's payout ratio is presently 22.91%.

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.