American Express (NYSE:AXP) Shares Sold by Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lowered its position in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 0.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 262,064 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 1,130 shares during the quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in American Express were worth $77,778,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth $832,000. World Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Express by 430.6% in the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,765 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,292,000 after acquiring an additional 3,867 shares during the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH boosted its stake in shares of American Express by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 349,937 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $103,858,000 after purchasing an additional 12,364 shares during the last quarter. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI grew its stake in American Express by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI now owns 86,344 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $25,626,000 after acquiring an additional 2,557 shares during the period. Finally, Edge Capital Group LLC increased its stake in American Express by 20.9% in the fourth quarter. Edge Capital Group LLC now owns 6,451 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,915,000 after purchasing an additional 1,113 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other American Express news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total transaction of $4,765,295.26. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 23,866 shares in the company, valued at $7,492,492.04. This trade represents a 38.88 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Michael J. Angelakis acquired 3,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction 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. This represents a ? increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

American Express Price Performance

NYSE:AXP opened at $272.15 on Friday. American Express has a 52-week low of $214.51 and a 52-week high of $326.28. 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 business’s 50-day moving average price is $295.97 and its 200 day moving average price is $289.03. The firm has a market cap of $191.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.43, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. As a group, sell-side 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 paid a dividend of $0.82 per share. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. American Express’s payout ratio is 23.41%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AXP has been the subject of several research reports. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. HSBC lifted their price objective on American Express from $270.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of American Express from $326.00 to $325.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of American Express from $320.00 to $300.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, American Express presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $302.57.

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.