Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Buys 25,269 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. $AEP

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 13.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 210,803 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 25,269 shares during the quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $23,715,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Soroban Capital Partners LP raised its stake in American Electric Power by 176.3% in the second quarter. Soroban Capital Partners LP now owns 4,004,686 shares of the company’s stock worth $415,526,000 after buying an additional 2,555,415 shares in the last quarter. Amundi boosted its position in American Electric Power by 26.1% during the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 3,694,659 shares of the company’s stock valued at $381,510,000 after acquiring an additional 765,258 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 28,516,466 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,958,869,000 after acquiring an additional 653,712 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 5.9% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,802,211 shares of the company’s stock worth $809,557,000 after acquiring an additional 432,441 shares during the period. Finally, National Pension Service raised its position in shares of American Electric Power by 22.8% in the 2nd quarter. National Pension Service now owns 1,894,580 shares of the company’s stock worth $196,582,000 after acquiring an additional 352,198 shares in the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at American Electric Power

In other American Electric Power news, Director Benjamin G. S. Fowke III sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.07, for a total transaction of $575,350.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 25,898 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,980,082.86. This trade represents a 16.18% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on American Electric Power from $123.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $125.00 price objective on shares of American Electric Power in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Bank of America downgraded shares of American Electric Power from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $131.00 to $122.00 in a research report on Monday, January 12th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH decreased their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $124.50 to $117.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $128.00 to $133.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, American Electric Power currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $127.39.

American Electric Power Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AEP opened at $119.21 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $117.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $114.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.53. The company has a market capitalization of $63.67 billion, a PE ratio of 17.38, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.63. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $97.32 and a 1-year high of $124.80.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The company reported $1.80 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.81 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.65 billion. American Electric Power had a net margin of 17.23% and a return on equity of 11.00%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.85 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 10th will be issued a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 10th. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is presently 55.39%.

About American Electric Power

American Electric Power (NASDAQ: AEP) is a major investor-owned electric utility headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. The company is primarily engaged in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity, operating a diverse portfolio of power plants and an extensive high-voltage transmission network. AEP serves retail customers through its regulated utility subsidiaries and provides wholesale power and grid services across multiple regional markets in the United States.

Operations span the full utility value chain: AEP owns and operates generation assets that include fossil-fuel, natural gas, nuclear and hydropower facilities, and it has been adding renewable resources to its mix.