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

American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average rating of "Hold" from the thirteen ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seven have assigned a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $99.92.

AEP has been the topic of a number of research reports. Scotiabank downgraded shares of American Electric Power from a "sector outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $105.00 to $102.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $102.00 target price (down previously from $109.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Guggenheim raised American Electric Power from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on American Electric Power from $100.00 to $99.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Electric Power

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in American Electric Power by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 51,690,606 shares of the company's stock worth $4,767,425,000 after acquiring an additional 763,813 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 26,902,755 shares of the company's stock worth $2,760,223,000 after purchasing an additional 1,114,954 shares during the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 3.7% in the 4th quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 15,060,525 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,389,032,000 after buying an additional 543,054 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of American Electric Power by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,808,003 shares of the company's stock worth $1,178,174,000 after buying an additional 283,311 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 8,603,600 shares of the company's stock worth $793,510,000 after acquiring an additional 716,229 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company's stock.

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American Electric Power Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AEP traded down $0.93 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $104.18. The stock had a trading volume of 2,615,898 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,762,194. The business's 50 day moving average price is $101.89 and its 200 day moving average price is $99.04. American Electric Power has a 1 year low of $79.16 and a 1 year high of $109.52. The company has a market cap of $55.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.24. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.27% and a net margin of 15.08%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.23 EPS. Research analysts expect that American Electric Power will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $0.93 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.57%. American Electric Power's payout ratio is currently 66.43%.

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.