Eagle Strategies LLC Raises Stock Position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Eagle Strategies LLC boosted its position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 2.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,883 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the quarter. Eagle Strategies LLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $450,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. DAVENPORT & Co LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 57,574 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,310,000 after buying an additional 3,288 shares during the last quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC grew its position in American Electric Power by 22.4% in the fourth quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC now owns 23,916 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,206,000 after acquiring an additional 4,370 shares in the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust increased its stake in American Electric Power by 436.9% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 7,092 shares of the company’s stock valued at $654,000 after acquiring an additional 5,771 shares during the last quarter. J2 Capital Management Inc purchased a new stake in American Electric Power during the fourth quarter valued at about $419,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in American Electric Power by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 640,029 shares of the company’s stock worth $65,667,000 after buying an additional 19,081 shares during the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on AEP. Barclays increased their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $95.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Guggenheim raised shares of American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Bank of America raised their price objective on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Morgan Stanley set a $114.00 target price on American Electric Power and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on American Electric Power from $111.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $101.69.

American Electric Power Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of AEP opened at $107.54 on Friday. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $85.93 and a 1-year high of $110.48. The company has a current ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $105.63 and its 200-day moving average price is $100.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.20, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.43.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.24. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.27% and a net margin of 15.08%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.23 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.93 per share. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.46%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 9th. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is currently 66.43%.

About American Electric Power

American Electric Power Company, Inc, an electric public utility holding company, engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity for sale to retail and wholesale customers in the United States. It operates through Vertically Integrated Utilities, Transmission and Distribution Utilities, AEP Transmission Holdco, and Generation & Marketing segments.