Code Waechter LLC Takes $337,000 Position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Code Waechter LLC purchased a new stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 3,081 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $337,000.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. EQ Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in American Electric Power during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in American Electric Power during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Bank of New Hampshire acquired a new stake in American Electric Power during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new stake in American Electric Power during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on AEP. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $114.00 to $113.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on shares of American Electric Power in a research report on Friday, June 13th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $115.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $109.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, June 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $108.31.

American Electric Power Trading Up 0.8%

AEP stock opened at $104.74 on Thursday. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a one year low of $87.51 and a one year high of $110.48. The company has a market capitalization of $55.95 billion, a PE ratio of 20.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.42. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $103.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $102.07.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.54 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.14. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.68% and a net margin of 13.73%. The company had revenue of $5.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.33 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.27 earnings per share. American Electric Power’s quarterly revenue was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th were given a dividend of $0.93 per share. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is 71.68%.

Insider Activity at American Electric Power

In related news, EVP David Matthew Feinberg sold 8,058 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.74, for a total transaction of $819,820.92. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 10,274 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,045,276.76. The trade was a 43.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Quinton S. Lies sold 10,141 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.68, for a total value of $1,041,277.88. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 9,658 shares in the company, valued at $991,683.44. This trade represents a 51.22% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 34,314 shares of company stock valued at $3,508,293 over the last quarter. 0.07% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.