Ascent Group LLC Boosts Stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. $AEP

Ascent Group LLC increased its stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 31,183 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 528 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $3,236,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in AEP. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the 1st quarter worth approximately $568,042,000. GQG Partners LLC lifted its position in American Electric Power by 30.4% in the 1st quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 19,631,466 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,145,130,000 after acquiring an additional 4,570,941 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 24.3% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 22,102,537 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,415,144,000 after buying an additional 4,323,569 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of 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 valued at $192,827,000 after buying an additional 1,726,868 shares during the period. Finally, Ghisallo Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the 1st quarter valued at $153,524,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH lowered their price target on American Electric Power from $112.00 to $108.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 10th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of American Electric Power in a research note on Saturday, September 27th. UBS Group upped their price objective on American Electric Power from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $122.00 price objective (up from $115.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on American Electric Power from $117.00 to $115.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $111.63.

American Electric Power Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of AEP stock opened at $114.06 on Friday. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 52-week low of $89.91 and a 52-week high of $115.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.00 billion, a PE ratio of 16.68, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.48. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $106.70.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.16. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.55% and a net margin of 17.68%.The business had revenue of $5.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.85 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.25 EPS. American Electric Power’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. American Electric Power has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.570-6.770 EPS. On average, analysts predict that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 8th were paid a $0.93 dividend. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 8th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.39%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Benjamin G. S. Fowke III sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.65, for a total transaction of $543,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 40,898 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,443,567.70. This represents a 10.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Kelly J. Ferneau sold 1,006 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $112.00, for a total value of $112,672.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 5,676 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $635,712. This represents a 15.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

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.