W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc. Buys 3,026 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc. increased its stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP - Free Report) by 89.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,398 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,026 shares during the quarter. W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc.'s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $590,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its position in American Electric Power by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 200,272 shares of the company's stock valued at $18,527,000 after purchasing an additional 3,534 shares during the period. Avestar Capital LLC grew its position in American Electric Power by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 4,832 shares of the company's stock valued at $446,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in American Electric Power by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 159,725 shares of the company's stock valued at $14,731,000 after purchasing an additional 13,635 shares during the period. Retirement Guys Formula LLC grew its position in American Electric Power by 13.3% in the 4th quarter. Retirement Guys Formula LLC now owns 8,783 shares of the company's stock valued at $810,000 after purchasing an additional 1,034 shares during the period. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its position in American Electric Power by 2.2% in the 4th 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 during the period. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Guggenheim raised shares of American Electric Power from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $102.00 price objective (down from $109.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a report on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $108.00 to $100.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Bank of America raised shares of American Electric Power from an "underperform" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $98.00 to $104.00 in a report on Monday, January 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $98.00.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AEP traded up $0.37 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $102.20. 3,145,506 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,337,450. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.58. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 52 week low of $79.16 and a 52 week 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 firm has a 50-day moving average price of $95.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $97.96.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.24. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.41% and a net margin of 13.48%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.23 EPS. Analysts predict that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.58 EPS for the current year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a $0.93 dividend. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.64%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. American Electric Power's dividend payout ratio is currently 74.55%.

American Electric Power 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.