American Electric Power Company, Inc. $AEP Shares Sold by Motco

Motco lowered its position in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 44,692 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,359 shares during the quarter. Motco’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $5,056,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of AEP. Advantage Trust Co raised its stake in American Electric Power by 57.1% during the second quarter. Advantage Trust Co now owns 275 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in American Electric Power during the first quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Missouri Trust & Investment Co acquired a new stake in American Electric Power during the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC raised its stake in American Electric Power by 277.1% during the second quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 313 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AEP has been the subject of several recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on American Electric Power from $125.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on American Electric Power from $121.00 to $127.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on American Electric Power from $115.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. Cowen initiated coverage on American Electric Power in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of American Electric Power in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Electric Power presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $120.79.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

Shares of AEP stock opened at $115.11 on Wednesday. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 12-month low of $89.91 and a 12-month high of $120.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.48. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $112.48 and a 200 day simple moving average of $108.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.41.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.16. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.55% and a net margin of 17.68%.The business had revenue of $5.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.85 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.25 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current year.

American Electric Power Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Monday, November 10th will be issued a $0.95 dividend. This is a positive change from American Electric Power’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 10th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Benjamin G. S. Fowke III sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.65, for a total value of $543,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 40,898 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,443,567.70. This represents a 10.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kelly J. Ferneau sold 1,006 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.00, for a total value of $112,672.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 5,676 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $635,712. This trade represents a 15.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 11,006 shares of company stock valued at $1,243,522 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

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.