American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) has earned an average rating of “Hold” from the thirteen brokerages that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $99.92.

Several brokerages recently issued reports on AEP. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Scotiabank cut American Electric Power from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $105.00 to $102.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Guggenheim upgraded shares of American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in AEP. Safeguard Investment Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in American Electric Power by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. Safeguard Investment Advisory Group LLC now owns 2,414 shares of the company’s stock valued at $223,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. SouthState Corp raised its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 6,611 shares of the company’s stock valued at $610,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 27,889 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,572,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP boosted its position in American Electric Power by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP now owns 4,537 shares of the company’s stock worth $418,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the period. Finally, PSI Advisors LLC increased its holdings in American Electric Power by 10.6% in the 4th quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 1,113 shares of the company’s stock valued at $103,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares in the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Electric Power Stock Down 1.6 %

American Electric Power stock opened at $102.50 on Friday. American Electric Power has a fifty-two week low of $79.16 and a fifty-two week high of $109.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.50. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $102.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $99.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.44.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24. American Electric Power had a net margin of 15.08% and a return on equity of 11.27%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.23 EPS. Analysts predict that American Electric Power will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $0.93 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.63%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is presently 66.43%.

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.