Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI Has $768,000 Stock Holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI grew its stake in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 318.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 8,341 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 6,347 shares during the period. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $768,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. DAVENPORT & Co LLC increased its position in shares of American Electric Power by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 57,574 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,310,000 after purchasing an additional 3,288 shares during the last quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of American Electric Power by 22.4% during the 4th quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC now owns 23,916 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,206,000 after purchasing an additional 4,370 shares during the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust increased its position in shares of American Electric Power by 436.9% during the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 7,092 shares of the company’s stock worth $654,000 after purchasing an additional 5,771 shares during the last quarter. J2 Capital Management Inc acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the 4th quarter worth approximately $419,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of American Electric Power by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 640,029 shares of the company’s stock worth $65,667,000 after purchasing an additional 19,081 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AEP opened at $105.24 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $98.53 and a 200-day moving average price of $98.52. The company has a market cap of $56.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.79, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.44. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $79.16 and a fifty-two week high of $109.52.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.27% and a net margin of 15.08%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.23 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The business 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. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.53%. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is 66.43%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on AEP shares. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $102.00 target price (down from $109.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on American Electric Power from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Evercore ISI reduced their target price on American Electric Power from $97.00 to $96.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on American Electric Power from $109.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $98.46.

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.