Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC Has $67.95 Million Stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP)

Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC trimmed its stake in American Express (NYSE:AXP) by 0.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 228,960 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 1,030 shares during the period. American Express comprises approximately 3.4% of Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest position. Cornerstone Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in American Express were worth $67,953,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 0.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,483,512 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $3,104,735,000 after purchasing an additional 86,100 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 8.5% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 11,003,715 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,984,208,000 after purchasing an additional 866,110 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 8,761,336 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $2,600,277,000 after purchasing an additional 95,927 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in American Express by 5.5% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 4,606,986 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,249,415,000 after purchasing an additional 239,173 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in American Express by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,960,842 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,074,168,000 after acquiring an additional 33,193 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Express Stock Down 1.9 %

AXP opened at $295.12 on Tuesday. American Express has a fifty-two week low of $214.51 and a fifty-two week high of $326.27. The firm has a market capitalization of $207.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.06, a PEG ratio of 1.41 and a beta of 1.24. The company’s 50-day moving average is $307.36 and its 200 day moving average is $287.39. 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 posted 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%. Research analysts expect that American Express will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 4th will be paid a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.11%. This is an increase from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. American Express’s dividend payout ratio is 19.99%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 9,485 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $319.17, for a total transaction of $3,027,327.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,308,795. This represents a 41.27 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Raymond Joabar sold 15,179 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $313.94, for a total transaction of $4,765,295.26. Following the completion of 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AXP has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their price target on American Express from $330.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. UBS Group increased their price target on American Express from $283.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, January 13th. BTIG Research increased their price target on American Express from $266.00 to $270.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on American Express from $305.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Compass Point cut their target price on shares of American Express from $325.00 to $309.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $296.38.

American Express Company 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.