Willis Investment Counsel Acquires 2,863 Shares of American Express Company $AXP

Willis Investment Counsel increased its holdings in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 5.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 56,680 shares of the payment services company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,863 shares during the period. Willis Investment Counsel’s holdings in American Express were worth $20,969,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AXP. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in American Express by 27.0% in the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 3,970,416 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,310,515,000 after purchasing an additional 845,283 shares in the last quarter. Amundi boosted its holdings in American Express by 23.9% in the third quarter. Amundi now owns 2,787,580 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $925,449,000 after purchasing an additional 537,205 shares in the last quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main boosted its holdings in American Express by 13.9% in the second quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 4,342,556 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,385,188,000 after purchasing an additional 530,967 shares in the last quarter. Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in American Express in the third quarter worth $153,292,000. Finally, Capital Wealth Planning LLC boosted its holdings in American Express by 18.5% in the third quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC now owns 2,169,242 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $720,535,000 after purchasing an additional 337,991 shares in the last quarter. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AXP has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, March 16th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of American Express from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Credit Suisse Group set a $328.00 price target on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of American Express from $400.00 to $360.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Express presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $350.86.

American Express Stock Up 3.1%

AXP stock opened at $316.54 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $320.50 and a two-hundred day moving average of $345.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $217.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.58. American Express Company has a 52-week low of $226.26 and a 52-week high of $387.49.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The payment services company reported $3.53 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.54 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of ($17,139.00) million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.91 billion. American Express had a net margin of 15.00% and a return on equity of 33.49%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.04 EPS. American Express has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.300-17.900 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.95 per share. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 2nd. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 24.69%.

Insider Activity at American Express

In other news, insider Denise Pickett sold 23,385 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.91, for a total transaction of $8,346,340.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 7,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,767,480.14. This represents a 75.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.58, for a total transaction of $5,348,700.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,945 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,189,608.10. This represents a 62.64% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 73,944 shares of company stock worth $26,114,366 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

About American Express

American Express is a global financial services company primarily known for its payment card products, travel services and merchant network. Founded in 1850 as an express mail business, the company evolved through the 20th century into a payments and travel-focused organization. Its core activities include issuing consumer and commercial charge and credit cards, operating a global card acceptance and processing network, and providing travel-related services and customer loyalty programs.

American Express issues a range of products for individuals, small businesses and large corporations, including personal cards, business and corporate cards, and co‑brand partnerships with airlines, hotels and retailers.