Wealthspire Advisors LLC Acquires 3,879 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Wealthspire Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 31.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 16,372 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,879 shares during the quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $1,330,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. BLB&B Advisors LLC boosted its stake in American Electric Power by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. BLB&B Advisors LLC now owns 3,405 shares of the company’s stock valued at $277,000 after buying an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC boosted its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 3,150 shares of the company’s stock valued at $237,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,975 shares of the company’s stock valued at $404,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co increased its position in American Electric Power by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 14,598 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,186,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in American Electric Power by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,715 shares of the company’s stock valued at $355,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American Electric Power Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AEP traded down $0.17 on Friday, hitting $90.78. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 125,070 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,677,417. The company has a market capitalization of $47.85 billion, a PE ratio of 16.87, a PEG ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 0.54 and a quick ratio of 0.37. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $84.63 and a 200 day simple moving average of $81.29. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 1 year low of $69.38 and a 1 year high of $92.10.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $5 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.02 billion. American Electric Power had a net margin of 14.60% and a return on equity of 11.23%. American Electric Power’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.11 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.88 per share. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.88%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 9th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.31%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AEP has been the topic of several research reports. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH cut American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $75.50 to $73.00 in a report on Friday, March 8th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Cfra restated a “buy” rating and issued a $92.00 price objective (up from $90.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. Guggenheim downgraded American Electric Power from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $81.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $84.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $88.14.

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.