Advisors Capital Management LLC Raises Holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Advisors Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 10.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,192 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 391 shares during the quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $387,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of AEP. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in American Electric Power during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Bank of America upped their price objective on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on American Electric Power from $107.00 to $111.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Guggenheim raised shares of American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $108.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. One investment 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. According to data from MarketBeat, American Electric Power presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $100.77.

American Electric Power Stock Up 0.1 %

NASDAQ AEP opened at $106.68 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $104.52 and its 200 day simple moving average is $99.37. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a one year low of $79.16 and a one year high of $110.48. The firm has a market cap of $56.93 billion, a PE ratio of 19.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 0.44 and a quick ratio of 0.31.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business earned $1.23 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a dividend of $0.93 per share. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is currently 66.43%.

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.