American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) Receives $88.43 Average Price Target from Brokerages

Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) have received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the thirteen analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, four have assigned a hold recommendation and seven have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $88.64.

Several brokerages recently commented on AEP. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH lowered American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $75.50 to $73.00 in a research note on Friday, March 8th. UBS Group downgraded American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $86.00 to $83.00 in a research report on Monday, March 11th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on American Electric Power from $95.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 14th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on American Electric Power from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price objective on American Electric Power from $86.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Electric Power

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Apella Capital LLC bought a new stake in American Electric Power in the fourth quarter valued at about $348,000. Rockline Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in American Electric Power in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,982,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in American Electric Power by 28.1% in the fourth quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 50,434 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,096,000 after acquiring an additional 11,065 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in American Electric Power by 1,592.1% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 414,150 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,612,000 after acquiring an additional 389,675 shares during the period. Finally, AJOVista LLC acquired a new position in American Electric Power in the fourth quarter valued at about $140,000. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American Electric Power Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AEP opened at $87.47 on Friday. American Electric Power has a 1-year low of $69.38 and a 1-year high of $93.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.11 billion, a PE ratio of 16.23, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.50. The business’s 50 day moving average is $86.69 and its 200-day moving average is $82.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $5 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.02 billion. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.23% and a net margin of 14.60%. American Electric Power’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.11 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that American Electric Power will post 5.58 earnings per share for the current year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 10th will be issued a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.02%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.31%.

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.