American Century Companies Inc. Has $333.58 Million Stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 13.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,123,961 shares of the payment services company’s stock after purchasing an additional 136,723 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned about 0.16% of American Express worth $333,580,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Plancorp LLC boosted its stake in American Express by 17.3% in the 4th quarter. Plancorp LLC now owns 3,830 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,137,000 after purchasing an additional 565 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its stake in American Express by 44.8% in the 4th quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 52,745 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $15,654,000 after purchasing an additional 16,327 shares during the period. ZEGA Investments LLC acquired a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter worth approximately $298,000. Sciencast Management LP acquired a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,043,000. Finally, Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter worth approximately $731,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.33% of the company’s stock.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of AXP opened at $270.48 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization 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 has a one year low of $214.51 and a one year high of $326.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.64, a current ratio of 1.58 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $298.30 and its 200 day moving average price is $288.31.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The payment services company reported $3.04 EPS 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%. As a group, analysts expect that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.21%. This is a positive change from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 4th. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.41%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Express news, 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 value of $4,765,295.26. Following the sale, 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 position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was 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. Company insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Baird R W upgraded shares of American Express from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, January 27th. BTIG Research increased their target price on shares of American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Compass Point cut their target price 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. Finally, Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of American Express from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $265.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $303.52.

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.