State of Michigan Retirement System Trims Stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

State of Michigan Retirement System cut its stake in shares of American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 151,077 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 1,900 shares during the period. State of Michigan Retirement System’s holdings in American Express were worth $44,838,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AXP. Prospera Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new stake in American Express during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. True Wealth Design LLC lifted its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in shares of American Express in the third quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Financial Life Planners purchased a new stake in shares of American Express in the fourth quarter worth $38,000. Institutional investors own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at American Express

In other American Express news, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of the business’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 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,308,795. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Compass Point lowered their target price on shares of American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Truist Financial initiated coverage on American Express in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $350.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group lifted their target price on American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $296.38.

American Express Stock Performance

American Express stock opened at $295.12 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $307.36 and its 200-day moving average price is $287.39. 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 market cap of $207.33 billion, a PE ratio of 21.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.24. American Express has a twelve month low of $214.51 and a twelve month high of $326.27.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued 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%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that American Express will post 15.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be given a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.11%. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 19.99%.

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.