Prudential PLC Boosts Stock Position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Prudential PLC increased its stake in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 3.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 24,224 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 824 shares during the quarter. Prudential PLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $2,234,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. SouthState Corp boosted its position in shares of American Electric Power by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 6,611 shares of the company’s stock valued at $610,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. PSI Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 10.6% in the 4th quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 1,113 shares of the company’s stock valued at $103,000 after buying an additional 107 shares during the period. Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,105 shares of the company’s stock worth $286,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Albion Financial Group UT raised its position in shares of American Electric Power by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 12,132 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,119,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the period. Finally, GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in American Electric Power by 11.2% in the fourth quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 1,112 shares of the company’s stock valued at $103,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Electric Power Trading Down 4.2 %

AEP opened at $104.48 on Monday. 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 one year low of $79.16 and a one year high of $110.48. The company has a market cap of $55.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.66, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.43. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $103.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $99.23.

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

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $0.93 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.56%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 66.43%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Scotiabank downgraded American Electric Power from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $105.00 to $102.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $102.00 price target (down from $109.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Bank of America increased their target price on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Electric Power currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $100.77.

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.