Mizuho Securities USA LLC Grows Stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 44.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 52,745 shares of the payment services company’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,327 shares during the quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $15,654,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the third quarter valued at $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC grew its holdings in shares of American Express by 332.0% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the third quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter valued at $38,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at American Express

In other American Express news, Director Michael J. Angelakis acquired 3,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was bought at an average price of $269.89 per share, with a total value of $998,593.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $998,593. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 23,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,492,492.04. This represents a 38.88 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

American Express Stock Down 0.1 %

AXP opened at $270.48 on Friday. American Express has a twelve month low of $214.51 and a twelve month 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 company has a 50-day moving average price of $298.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $288.31. The company has a market cap of $190.02 billion, a PE ratio of 19.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 32.65%. Sell-side analysts expect that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a 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 currently 23.41%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AXP has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Monness Crespi & Hardt boosted their price objective on shares of American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of American Express from $326.00 to $325.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of American Express from $367.00 to $330.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $303.52.

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.