Legal & General Group Plc Cuts Stock Holdings in American Express Company $AXP

Legal & General Group Plc trimmed its stake in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 3,414,708 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 69,168 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc’s holdings in American Express were worth $1,263,271,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. grew its stake in American Express by 153.3% during the third quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 76 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Joseph Group Capital Management purchased a new position in American Express during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Guerra Advisors Inc purchased a new position in American Express during the third quarter valued at $28,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC purchased a new position in American Express during the third quarter valued at $28,000. Finally, Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in American Express during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of AXP opened at $311.98 on Monday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $311.35 and its 200 day moving average is $340.54. American Express Company has a fifty-two week low of $281.46 and a fifty-two week high of $387.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $212.87 billion, a PE ratio of 19.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 1.56 and a current ratio of 1.57.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The payment services company reported $4.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.01 by $0.27. American Express had a net margin of 15.13% and a return on equity of 33.95%. The company had revenue of $14.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.60 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.64 earnings per share. American Express’s quarterly revenue was up 11.4% on a year-over-year basis. American Express has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.300-17.900 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that American Express Company will post 17.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 2nd. This is a positive change from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. American Express’s payout ratio is presently 23.71%.

American Express News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting American Express this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts highlighted American Express’s resilient premium spending, strong earnings growth, and expanding lifestyle ecosystem as reasons it may have more upside than PayPal. American Express vs. PayPal: Which Fintech Stock Has More Upside?
• Positive Sentiment: American Express expanded its sports-commerce strategy through a Fanatics tie-up, adding a co-branded card and rewards integration that could support card usage and customer engagement. AmEx Expands Sports Commerce Strategy With Fanatics Tie-Up
• Positive Sentiment: American Express was also mentioned as one of Warren Buffett’s long-term “forever” holdings, reinforcing investor confidence in the company’s durable business model and cash-generating ability. Warren Buffett’s favorite stocks to buy and hold forever
• Neutral Sentiment: Other articles simply reiterated American Express’s status as a Buffett-backed dividend and quality financial stock, which supports the investment case but does not represent a new catalyst. 2 Warren Buffett Stocks That Pay You a Passive Income
• Neutral Sentiment: A broader market piece said weakness in American Express is drawing attention to S&P 500 value stocks, which is more of a commentary on relative valuation than a direct negative company-specific development. American Express Weakness Puts S&P 500 Value In Focus
• Neutral Sentiment: Promotional news about new Hilton and Marriott card offers may support future card sign-ups, but it appears to be routine marketing rather than a major earnings-moving event. New Hilton and Marriott credit card offers — earn up to 175,000 points

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Evercore set a $345.00 target price on shares of American Express in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. BTIG Research restated a “sell” rating and issued a $285.00 price target on shares of American Express in a research report on Friday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $360.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 28th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of American Express from $381.00 to $387.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Finally, Freedom Capital upgraded shares of American Express from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $359.05.

American Express Company Profile

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.