Drexel Morgan & Co. Has $13.63 Million Stock Position in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Drexel Morgan & Co. lowered its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 35.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 45,918 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 25,000 shares during the period. American Express accounts for about 2.8% of Drexel Morgan & Co.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. Drexel Morgan & Co.’s holdings in American Express were worth $13,628,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,483,512 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $3,104,735,000 after acquiring an additional 86,100 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Express by 8.5% in the third 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 last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of American Express by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,761,336 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $2,600,277,000 after buying an additional 95,927 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its stake in American Express by 5.5% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,606,986 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,249,415,000 after buying an additional 239,173 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in American Express by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,960,842 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,074,168,000 after buying an additional 33,193 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In other news, Director Michael J. Angelakis bought 3,700 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on Friday, March 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, 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 purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total transaction of $3,027,327.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at $4,308,795. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

American Express Trading Down 0.1 %

AXP opened at $270.48 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $298.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $288.55. The company has a market capitalization of $190.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.31, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21. American Express has a 52 week low of $214.51 and a 52 week high of $326.28.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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%. Analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. This is a boost from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.41%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on AXP. Wells Fargo & Company upped 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. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of American Express from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $265.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, March 14th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Baird R W upgraded American Express from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Argus lowered American Express from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Two research 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. According to data from MarketBeat, American Express currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $303.52.

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.