Bank of America Lowers American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) to Underperform

Bank of America cut shares of American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) from a neutral rating to an underperform rating in a research report report published on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Bank of America currently has $97.00 price target on the stock, up from their previous price target of $96.00.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. StockNews.com raised American Electric Power from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Barclays increased their target price on American Electric Power from $91.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $100.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of American Electric Power from a sell rating to a neutral rating and increased their price objective for the company from $73.00 to $86.00 in a report on Thursday, June 6th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, American Electric Power presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $93.38.

American Electric Power Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AEP opened at $98.04 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. American Electric Power has a 52-week low of $69.38 and a 52-week high of $104.41. The stock has a market cap of $51.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.19, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.53. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $91.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $86.54.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $4.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.74 billion. American Electric Power had a net margin of 13.52% and a return on equity of 11.31%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.13 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that American Electric Power will post 5.59 EPS for the current year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 9th will be given a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 9th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.59%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Antonio P. Smyth sold 4,898 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total transaction of $440,820.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,446 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $580,140. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Antonio P. Smyth sold 4,898 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total transaction of $440,820.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,446 shares in the company, valued at approximately $580,140. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Greg B. Hall sold 5,880 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.25, for a total value of $518,910.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,385 shares in the company, valued at $563,476.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of American Electric Power

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Williams Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $876,000. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in American Electric Power by 3.3% during the second quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 16,850 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,478,000 after purchasing an additional 533 shares in the last quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC boosted its position in shares of American Electric Power by 6.1% during the second quarter. Prosperity Consulting Group LLC now owns 3,241 shares of the company’s stock worth $284,000 after buying an additional 187 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 1.1% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,378,543 shares of the company’s stock valued at $296,433,000 after buying an additional 35,769 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 27.2% in the 2nd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 26,498 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,325,000 after buying an additional 5,671 shares during the period. 75.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.