Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Lowers Stock Holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA cut its holdings in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 7.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,546,086 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 647,315 shares during the quarter. American Express accounts for 0.8% of Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest position. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned about 1.21% of American Express worth $2,536,393,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in AXP. True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 332.0% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 108 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Curio Wealth LLC purchased a new position in American Express in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. acquired a new stake in American Express in the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In related news, Director Michael J. Angelakis bought 3,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $269.89 per share, for a total transaction of $998,593.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 3,700 shares in the company, valued at approximately $998,593. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total value of $3,027,327.45. Following the sale, the insider now owns 13,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,308,795. This trade represents a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AXP has been the topic of several research reports. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on American Express from $315.00 to $344.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. StockNews.com lowered shares of American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Bank of America decreased 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 note on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $302.57.

American Express Price Performance

Shares of AXP opened at $270.31 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $293.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $289.86. The stock has a market cap of $189.90 billion, a PE ratio of 19.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.21. American Express has a 1-year low of $214.51 and a 1-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.

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

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.21%. This is a boost 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 23.41%.

About American Express

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.