State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Increases Stake in American Express Company $AXP

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D grew its stake in shares of American Express Company (NYSE:AXP) by 3.0% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 196,107 shares of the payment services company’s stock after buying an additional 5,765 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in American Express were worth $65,139,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in American Express by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 46,425,262 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $14,808,730,000 after buying an additional 581,369 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of American Express by 11.1% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,487,316 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $4,282,984,000 after acquiring an additional 1,349,746 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of American Express during the second quarter worth about $1,897,335,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership grew its stake in shares of American Express by 3.0% in the second quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 4,620,873 shares of the payment services company’s stock worth $1,473,966,000 after purchasing an additional 133,439 shares during the last quarter. Finally, DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main increased its holdings in American Express by 13.9% during the 2nd quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 4,342,556 shares of the payment services company’s stock valued at $1,385,188,000 after purchasing an additional 530,967 shares during the period. 84.33% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Denise Pickett sold 23,385 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $356.91, for a total transaction of $8,346,340.35. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 7,754 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,767,480.14. This represents a 75.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $356.58, for a total transaction of $5,348,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 8,945 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,189,608.10. This represents a 62.64% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 73,944 shares of company stock valued at $26,114,366. 0.20% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Key Stories Impacting American Express

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

• Positive Sentiment: Management set FY‑2026 guidance for revenue growth (~9–10%) and EPS of $17.30–$17.90 (midpoint above some analyst expectations), reinforcing the narrative of resilient premium card spending supporting earnings. AXP anticipates a strong 2026 profit (Yahoo)
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage pieces and a Seeking Alpha “rating upgrade” highlight AmEx as a steady compounder, calling out premium spend strength and steady guidance as reasons to consider the stock. Seeking Alpha: AXP rating upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Corporate actions and marketing (expanded NBA partnership, ongoing premium card activation efforts) support brand engagement and higher‑yield customer spend—a longer‑term revenue positive. NBA and American Express partnership
• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly dividend was paid (maintains yield ~0.9%); steady capital return is supportive for income‑focused holders. MarketBeat AXP dividend details
• Neutral Sentiment: Company presented at the UBS Financial Services Conference — useful detail for modeling and analyst updates but not an immediate catalyst by itself. UBS presentation (Seeking Alpha)
• Neutral Sentiment: American Express issued new debt to boost funding — improves liquidity/funding flexibility but raises leverage and interest‑cost exposure; market impact depends on size/terms. AXP boosts funding with new debt issuances
• Negative Sentiment: Large insider sales: Ravikumar Radhakrishnan sold 15,000 shares (~$5.35M at ≈$356.58) and Howard Grosfield sold 8,134 shares (~$2.82M at ≈$346.73). Big, concentrated insider reductions can weigh on near‑term sentiment. Insider trades alert (InsiderTrades)
• Negative Sentiment: Shares have underperformed peers and fell in recent sessions (coverage citing CNBC/Benzinga), which can trigger sector rebalancing outflows and exacerbate declines. CNBC ‘Final Trades’ note (Benzinga)
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts have trimmed targets/ratings (Evercore/JPMorgan moves referenced), a reminder expectations are being modestly reset—analyst downgrades/target cuts can be immediate share‑price pressure. Analyst notes and PT changes (Benzinga)

American Express Stock Down 1.5%

Shares of American Express stock opened at $337.84 on Friday. American Express Company has a 1 year low of $220.43 and a 1 year high of $387.49. The firm has a market cap of $231.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.95, a PEG ratio of 1.43 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a 50-day moving average of $367.05 and a 200 day moving average of $346.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.66.

American Express (NYSE:AXP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The payment services company reported $3.53 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.54 by ($0.01). American Express had a return on equity of 33.49% and a net margin of 15.00%.The business had revenue of ($17,139.00) million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.91 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.04 EPS. American Express’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.5% compared to the same quarter last year. American Express has set its FY 2026 guidance at 17.300-17.900 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Express Company will post 15.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Express Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 2nd were issued a $0.82 dividend. This represents a $3.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 2nd. American Express’s payout ratio is 21.31%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have weighed in on AXP. BTIG Research reiterated a “sell” rating and issued a $328.00 price objective on shares of American Express in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of American Express from $420.00 to $400.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of American Express from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, November 9th. Morgan Stanley set a $395.00 price target on shares of American Express in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of American Express from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, American Express has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $354.78.

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.