Aberdeen Asset Management PLC UK Has $56.23 Million Stake in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP)

Aberdeen Asset Management PLC UK lowered its stake in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 3.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 710,792 shares of the payment services company’s stock after selling 27,396 shares during the period. Aberdeen Asset Management PLC UK’s holdings in American Express were worth $56,230,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AXP. Empire Life Investments Inc. acquired a new position in American Express during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $16,610,000. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main bought a new stake in American Express during the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,866,000. IFM Investors Pty Ltd bought a new stake in American Express during the fourth quarter worth approximately $763,000. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its stake in American Express by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 26,963 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,997,000 after buying an additional 1,510 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Numeric Investors LLC acquired a new stake in American Express during the fourth quarter worth approximately $793,000. 83.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Company (NYSE AXP) traded down 1.49% on Thursday, hitting $86.09. The stock had a trading volume of 3,815,401 shares. American Express Company has a 52 week low of $59.50 and a 52 week high of $87.78. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $85.12 and a 200 day moving average of $80.45. The company has a market capitalization of $76.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.66 and a beta of 1.18.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 19th. The payment services company reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $8.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.20 billion. American Express had a return on equity of 21.90% and a net margin of 14.11%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.10 EPS. On average, analysts predict that American Express Company will post $5.74 earnings per share for the current year.

American Express announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, June 28th that permits the company to repurchase $4.40 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the payment services company to buy up to 5.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

A number of research analysts recently commented on AXP shares. Guggenheim raised shares of American Express from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $81.05 to $90.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 25th. BidaskClub upgraded shares of American Express from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, June 30th. Barclays PLC reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $83.00 target price on shares of American Express in a research note on Thursday, July 20th. Stephens raised shares of American Express from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $70.00 to $82.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 20th. Finally, Jefferies Group LLC reissued a “hold” rating and set a $85.00 price objective on shares of American Express in a report on Friday, April 28th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. American Express presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $84.77.

In other news, Vice Chairman Stephen J. Squeri sold 94,792 shares of American Express stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.41, for a total transaction of $8,096,184.72. Following the sale, the insider now owns 261,665 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,348,807.65. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Marc D. Gordon sold 4,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.98, for a total value of $377,202.00. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 948,287 shares of company stock worth $80,321,961. Corporate insiders own 0.67% of the company’s stock.

About American Express

American Express Company, together with its subsidiaries, is a global services company. The Company’s principal products and services are charge and credit card products, and travel-related services, which are offered to consumers and businesses around the world. Its segments include the U.S. Consumer Services (USCS), International Consumer and Network Services (ICNS), Global Commercial Services (GCS) and Global Merchant Services (GMS).