American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) Shares Sold by Cullen Frost Bankers Inc.

Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 0.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 238,110 shares of the company’s stock after selling 392 shares during the period. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc.’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $21,961,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AEP. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in American Electric Power by 109.5% during the 3rd 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. State Street Corp boosted its stake in 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. FMR LLC boosted its stake in American Electric Power by 18.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,866,952 shares of the company’s stock worth $704,549,000 after purchasing an additional 1,087,163 shares during the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management acquired a new stake in American Electric Power during the 3rd quarter worth $80,207,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in American Electric Power by 31.6% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,075,032 shares of the company’s stock worth $315,498,000 after purchasing an additional 738,756 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American Electric Power Stock Down 1.8 %

Shares of AEP opened at $103.39 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $55.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.50. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 12-month low of $79.16 and a 12-month high of $109.52. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $98.75 and its 200 day moving average price is $98.55. 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) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate 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 last year, the company posted $1.23 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.93 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.60%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.43%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on AEP shares. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Guggenheim upgraded American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $102.00 price target (down previously from $109.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on American Electric Power from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on American Electric Power from $100.00 to $99.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $98.46.

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.