Hilltop Holdings Inc. Increases Holdings in American Express Company $AXP

Hilltop Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 175.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 12,133 shares of the payment services company’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,735 shares during the period. Hilltop Holdings Inc.’s holdings in American Express were worth $4,030,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in American Express by 24.4% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,481 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,924,000 after acquiring an additional 1,273 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of American Express by 13.0% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,738 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $554,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. purchased a new position in shares of American Express in the second quarter valued at $428,000. Intrua Financial LLC acquired a new stake in American Express during the 2nd quarter valued at $261,000. Finally, Advisors Capital Management LLC increased its stake in American Express by 18.8% during the 2nd quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC now owns 5,454 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,740,000 after buying an additional 865 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Express Stock Performance

Shares of AXP opened at $300.16 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $206.09 billion, a PE ratio of 19.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.15. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $344.01 and its 200 day moving average price is $349.12. 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 12-month low of $220.43 and a 12-month high of $387.49.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 30th. The payment services company reported $3.53 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.54 by ($0.01). American Express had a net margin of 15.00% and a return on equity of 33.49%. The business had revenue of ($17,139.00) million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.91 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.04 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. American Express has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.300-17.900 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that American Express Company will post 15.33 EPS for the current year.

American Express Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Investors of record on Friday, April 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.3%. This is a positive change from American Express’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.82. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 2nd. American Express’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.31%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AXP has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $420.00 price objective on shares of American Express in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of American Express in a research note on Monday, December 8th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $425.00 price target on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, January 12th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of American Express from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of American Express from $355.00 to $367.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $356.90.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Express

In other American Express news, insider Howard Grosfield sold 8,134 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $346.73, for a total value of $2,820,301.82. Following the transaction, the insider owned 9,433 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,270,704.09. This trade represents a 46.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Denise Pickett sold 23,385 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.91, for a total value of $8,346,340.35. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 7,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,767,480.14. This trade represents a 75.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 73,944 shares of company stock worth $26,114,366. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

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.