Argent Trust Co Raises Holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Argent Trust Co grew its position in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 0.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 76,472 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 331 shares during the period. Argent Trust Co’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $8,356,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AEP. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in American Electric Power by 51.0% during the 4th quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 6,416,474 shares of the company’s stock worth $591,791,000 after purchasing an additional 2,165,888 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in American Electric Power by 13,499.5% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,150,215 shares of the company’s stock worth $234,954,000 after purchasing an additional 2,134,404 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in American Electric Power by 4,567.3% during the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,764,677 shares of the company’s stock worth $192,827,000 after purchasing an additional 1,726,868 shares in the last quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. purchased a new stake in American Electric Power during the 4th quarter worth about $121,605,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in American Electric Power by 27.5% during the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,120,568 shares of the company’s stock worth $472,270,000 after purchasing an additional 1,105,317 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AEP opened at $113.58 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $60.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.61, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $89.91 and a 1-year high of $114.38. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $104.61 and its 200 day moving average is $104.02.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $5.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.85 billion. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.55% and a net margin of 17.68%. American Electric Power’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.25 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th will be given a dividend of $0.93 per share. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 8th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.39%.

Insider Activity at American Electric Power

In related news, EVP David Matthew Feinberg sold 8,058 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.74, for a total transaction of $819,820.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 10,274 shares in the company, valued at $1,045,276.76. This trade represents a 43.96% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Quinton S. Lies sold 10,141 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.68, for a total value of $1,041,277.88. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 34,314 shares of company stock worth $3,508,293. 0.07% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on AEP. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on American Electric Power from $111.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. UBS Group raised their price target on American Electric Power from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday. Barclays raised their price target on American Electric Power from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday. Citigroup raised their price target on American Electric Power from $102.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Mizuho set a $116.00 price target on American Electric Power and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. One 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $111.29.

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.