American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) have earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the thirteen ratings firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seven have issued a hold recommendation and five have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $99.92.

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on AEP. Scotiabank cut American Electric Power from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $105.00 to $102.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $108.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $100.00 to $99.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Guggenheim raised shares of American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $108.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th.

Institutional Trading of American Electric Power

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AEP. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in American Electric Power in the third quarter worth $25,000. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new stake in American Electric Power during the third quarter worth about $33,000. 75.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Electric Power Stock Down 1.6 %

AEP stock opened at $102.50 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $54.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.30, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.50. 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 has a twelve month low of $79.16 and a twelve month high of $109.52. The company’s 50 day moving average is $102.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $99.05.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, hitting 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 quarter last year, the company posted $1.23 EPS. Research analysts expect that American Electric Power will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

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

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.