ProShare Advisors LLC Buys 103,771 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP - Free Report) by 21.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 582,692 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 103,771 shares during the quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC owned about 0.11% of American Electric Power worth $50,170,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS grew its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 8.7% in the first quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 1,055,864 shares of the company's stock valued at $90,910,000 after buying an additional 84,708 shares in the last quarter. Hohimer Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the first quarter valued at $4,166,000. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 172.6% in the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 376,718 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,434,000 after buying an additional 238,521 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 5.5% in the first quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 9,304 shares of the company's stock valued at $801,000 after buying an additional 488 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Choate Investment Advisors grew its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 6.7% in the first quarter. Choate Investment Advisors now owns 3,144 shares of the company's stock valued at $271,000 after buying an additional 197 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company's stock.

American Electric Power Price Performance

AEP stock traded up $1.67 on Wednesday, reaching $93.52. The company had a trading volume of 3,277,586 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,292,743. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 1 year low of $69.38 and a 1 year high of $94.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.54. The company's fifty day moving average is $89.25 and its 200 day moving average is $84.87. The company has a market cap of $49.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.35, a PEG ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.53.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $5 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.02 billion. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.23% and a net margin of 14.60%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.11 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.58 earnings per share for the current year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 10th were issued a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.76%. American Electric Power's dividend payout ratio is currently 65.31%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AEP has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays boosted their target price on American Electric Power from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on American Electric Power from $98.00 to $94.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on American Electric Power from $84.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on American Electric Power from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price target on American Electric Power from $86.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $88.62.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Greg B. Hall sold 5,880 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.25, for a total transaction of $518,910.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,385 shares of the company's stock, valued at $563,476.25. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Antonio P. Smyth sold 4,898 shares of American Electric Power stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total transaction of $440,820.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,446 shares of the company's stock, valued at $580,140. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Greg B. Hall sold 5,880 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.25, for a total transaction of $518,910.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,385 shares in the company, valued at approximately $563,476.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.12% of the company's stock.

American Electric Power Company Profile

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.