Stephens Inc. AR Increases Stock Position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Stephens Inc. AR raised its position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 169.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 105,329 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 66,275 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $9,715,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. XML Financial LLC grew its position in American Electric Power by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. XML Financial LLC now owns 2,921 shares of the company’s stock valued at $300,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. PSI Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 10.6% in the fourth quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 1,113 shares of the company’s stock valued at $103,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. Garrison Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 0.6% in the third quarter. Garrison Asset Management LLC now owns 19,009 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,950,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Roanoke Asset Management Corp NY increased its stake in American Electric Power by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Roanoke Asset Management Corp NY now owns 5,025 shares of the company’s stock worth $516,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the period. Finally, First United Bank & Trust lifted its holdings in American Electric Power by 17.1% during the 3rd quarter. First United Bank & Trust now owns 766 shares of the company’s stock worth $79,000 after buying an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on AEP. Scotiabank downgraded shares of American Electric Power from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $105.00 to $102.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Bank of America raised American Electric Power from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $98.00 to $104.00 in a research note on Monday, January 13th. 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 research report on Thursday, November 7th. Barclays lowered their price objective on 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. Finally, Guggenheim raised shares of American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $98.00.

American Electric Power Trading Up 0.2 %

NASDAQ AEP opened at $100.35 on Monday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $95.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $97.77. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $75.22 and a 12 month high of $105.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.41. The company has a market capitalization of $53.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.58.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a dividend of $0.93 per share. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 74.55%.

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.