Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC Reduces Holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC lessened its position in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 4.3% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 4,806 shares of the company’s stock after selling 218 shares during the quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $525,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in American Electric Power by 11.5% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 10,601 shares of the company’s stock valued at $978,000 after acquiring an additional 1,095 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in American Electric Power by 23.5% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 5,257 shares of the company’s stock worth $485,000 after buying an additional 1,002 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the 4th quarter worth approximately $263,000. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. grew its holdings in American Electric Power by 8.4% in the fourth quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 38,135 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,517,000 after purchasing an additional 2,942 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in American Electric Power during the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on American Electric Power from $107.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on American Electric Power from $114.00 to $113.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $109.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $108.31.

American Electric Power Stock Down 0.4%

NASDAQ:AEP opened at $101.20 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.42. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $104.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $101.17. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a one year low of $85.93 and a one year high of $110.48. The company has a market capitalization of $54.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.42.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.14. American Electric Power had a net margin of 13.73% and a return on equity of 11.68%. The company had revenue of $5.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.33 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.27 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th were issued a dividend of $0.93 per share. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.68%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 71.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Electric Power

In other American Electric Power news, EVP Quinton S. Lies sold 10,141 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.68, for a total value of $1,041,277.88. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 9,658 shares in the company, valued at approximately $991,683.44. The trade was a 51.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Matthew Feinberg sold 8,057 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.94, for a total transaction of $829,387.58. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 26,298 shares in the company, valued at $2,707,116.12. The trade was a 23.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 34,314 shares of company stock valued at $3,508,293 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

American Electric Power Company Profile

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.