KeyCorp Cuts Earnings Estimates for American Electric Power

American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) – Analysts at KeyCorp reduced their Q3 2026 EPS estimates for American Electric Power in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday, October 12th. KeyCorp analyst S. Karp now anticipates that the company will post earnings per share of $2.09 for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $2.19. KeyCorp has an “Overweight” rating and a $133.00 price objective on the stock. The consensus estimate for American Electric Power’s current full-year earnings is $6.38 per share. KeyCorp also issued estimates for American Electric Power’s Q4 2026 earnings at $1.34 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $6.42 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $6.84 EPS, FY2029 earnings at $8.26 EPS and FY2030 earnings at $9.07 EPS.

AEP has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on American Electric Power from $147.00 to $154.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 1st. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $129.00 to $120.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of American Electric Power in a research report on Wednesday, September 9th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH decreased their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $148.00 to $143.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of American Electric Power in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $138.91.

American Electric Power Price Performance

AEP opened at $126.13 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a current ratio of 0.50 and a quick ratio of 0.38. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $122.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $128.67. The firm has a market cap of $68.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.63, a PEG ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.48. American Electric Power has a 1 year low of $112.54 and a 1 year high of $140.58.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.36 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.48 by ($0.12). American Electric Power had a net margin of 13.78% and a return on equity of 9.95%. The business had revenue of $5.45 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.34 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.43 EPS. American Electric Power’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. American Electric Power has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.250-6.550 EPS.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th were given a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is presently 65.18%.

Insider Transactions at American Electric Power

In other American Electric Power news, CAO Kate Dixon sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.00, for a total value of $250,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 15,856 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,982,000. This represents a 11.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders own 0.05% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Electric Power

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $6,980,601,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in shares of American Electric Power by 5.4% in the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 13,872,005 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,897,829,000 after buying an additional 715,613 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,678,638,000. GQG Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,404,094,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the 2nd quarter worth about $680,638,000. 75.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

More American Electric Power News

Here are the key news stories impacting American Electric Power this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AEP plans to invest approximately $4 billion in a 702-megawatt Wyoming fuel-cell project under a 20-year power-purchase agreement with Google. The contract provides a long-term customer for the project and strengthens AEP’s position as a provider of dedicated power for rapidly expanding data-center demand. Reuters: American Electric Power to invest $4 billion in fuel cell project to power Google
• Positive Sentiment: KeyCorp maintained an Overweight rating and a $133 price target while raising its FY2026 EPS estimate to $6.42 from $6.36, FY2027 to $6.84 from $6.82, and Q4 2026 to $1.34 from $1.05. The revisions suggest improving expectations for AEP’s earnings growth, although KeyCorp slightly reduced its Q3 estimate. KeyBanc upgrades American Electric Power to Overweight
• Positive Sentiment: AEP is also pursuing a 1.6-gigawatt agreement with Mainspring Energy for mobile generation units. The deal could help the utility bring capacity online more quickly to serve large-load customers and data centers, supporting its broader demand-growth pipeline. Mainspring Energy Signs 1.6 GW Agreement with AEP
• Neutral Sentiment: The Wyoming project and other planned capacity additions could expand AEP’s regulated and contracted earnings base, but the multibillion-dollar commitments may increase financing needs and execution risk before the investments contribute meaningfully to earnings. Wall Street Journal: AEP to Invest $4 Billion in Fuel Cell Project
• Negative Sentiment: Barclays reportedly lowered its price target for AEP, creating a counterpoint to KeyCorp’s bullish view and potentially limiting near-term upside. KeyCorp also trimmed its Q3 2026 EPS estimate to $2.09 from $2.19 and slightly lowered its FY2030 estimate to $9.07 from $9.10. American Banking News: AEP Stock Price Target Cut by Barclays

About American Electric Power

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) is a regulated electric utility holding company that generates, transmits and distributes electricity to residential, commercial, industrial and other customers. Through its operating companies, AEP owns and manages a diverse portfolio of power plants, electric distribution systems and one of the largest transmission networks in the United States.

AEP serves customers across parts of 11 states, including Arkansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia.