Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Grows Stock Holdings in American Express Company $AXP

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its position in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 10.4% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 110,840 shares of the payment services company’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,441 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.’s holdings in American Express were worth $36,817,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AXP. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Express during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Access Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the second quarter valued at $26,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc acquired a new position in shares of American Express during the 2nd quarter worth $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of American Express by 210.7% in the 3rd quarter. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in American Express in the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on AXP shares. Compass Point reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $324.00 target price on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Barclays upped their price objective on American Express from $355.00 to $367.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on American Express from $360.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 12th. Wall Street Zen downgraded American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, November 9th. Finally, BTIG Research restated a “sell” rating and issued a $328.00 price objective on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, January 12th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $353.95.

American Express Trading Down 0.7%

NYSE AXP opened at $356.89 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $245.84 billion, a PE ratio of 23.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.15. American Express Company has a one year low of $220.43 and a one year high of $387.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.78, a quick ratio of 1.59 and a current ratio of 1.61. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $369.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $343.29.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The payment services company reported ($11.85) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.56 by ($15.41). American Express had a return on equity of 33.41% and a net margin of 14.97%.The firm had revenue of ($17,139.00) million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.91 billion. On average, equities analysts forecast that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.82 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 2nd. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. American Express’s payout ratio is currently 22.01%.

Insider Transactions at American Express

In other American Express news, CMO Elizabeth Rutledge sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.21, for a total transaction of $18,010,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer directly owned 85,577 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,825,691.17. This trade represents a 36.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 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.