Arizona State Retirement System Has $48.90 Million Stock Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Arizona State Retirement System cut its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 0.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 164,774 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 276 shares during the quarter. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in American Express were worth $48,903,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its holdings in shares of American Express by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 47,545 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $12,896,000 after buying an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. purchased a new position in American Express in the third quarter valued at about $297,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in American Express in the 3rd quarter valued at about $4,095,000. MinichMacGregor Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of American Express in the third quarter worth $278,000. Finally, Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC purchased a new position in American Express during the third quarter valued at approximately $484,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at American Express

In related news, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of American Express stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total value of $3,027,327.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 13,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,308,795. The trade was a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the insider now owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at $7,492,492.04. The trade was a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

AXP stock opened at $283.05 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $198.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.24. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $306.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $287.61. 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.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.00 by $0.04. American Express had a return on equity of 32.65% and a net margin of 15.36%. On average, equities analysts predict that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company 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 $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.16%. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is 19.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Truist Financial initiated coverage on American Express in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $350.00 price target for the company. HSBC increased their price objective on shares of American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Compass Point reduced their price target on shares of American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on American Express from $305.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of American Express from $355.00 to $370.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Express presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $296.38.

American Express 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.