American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) Given Average Rating of "Hold" by Analysts

Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP - Get Free Report) have earned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the fourteen research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $98.00.

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Evercore ISI cut their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $97.00 to $96.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Guggenheim upgraded American Electric Power from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on American Electric Power from $109.00 to $104.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $100.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded American Electric Power from an "underperform" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $98.00 to $104.00 in a report on Monday, January 13th.

American Electric Power Price Performance

Shares of AEP stock traded down $0.08 on Thursday, hitting $97.97. 1,000,789 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,325,531. American Electric Power has a 12 month low of $75.22 and a 12 month high of $105.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.41. The company has a 50 day moving average of $95.09 and a 200 day moving average of $97.47. The stock has a market cap of $52.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.56.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.93 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.80%. American Electric Power's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 74.55%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Electric Power

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AEP. State Street Corp raised its stake in American Electric Power by 4.3% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 26,902,755 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,760,223,000 after purchasing an additional 1,114,954 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in American Electric Power by 2.9% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,524,692 shares of the company's stock worth $1,280,655,000 after acquiring an additional 352,588 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in American Electric Power by 18.8% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,866,952 shares of the company's stock valued at $704,549,000 after acquiring an additional 1,087,163 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its position in American Electric Power by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 4,644,349 shares of the company's stock valued at $427,009,000 after purchasing an additional 100,578 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in American Electric Power by 109.5% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,753,250 shares of the company's stock worth $385,079,000 after purchasing an additional 1,962,125 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.24% 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.