New York Life Investment Management LLC Boosts Position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

New York Life Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 0.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 71,568 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 613 shares during the quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $6,601,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AEP. Simmons Bank increased its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Simmons Bank now owns 71,006 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,549,000 after purchasing an additional 924 shares in the last quarter. Advisor OS LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Advisor OS LLC now owns 6,547 shares of the company’s stock valued at $604,000 after purchasing an additional 346 shares in the last quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 12.9% during the 4th quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 4,498 shares of the company’s stock valued at $415,000 after purchasing an additional 513 shares in the last quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 135,006 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,452,000 after purchasing an additional 2,991 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vaughan David Investments LLC IL increased its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Vaughan David Investments LLC IL now owns 476,656 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,962,000 after purchasing an additional 2,634 shares in the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Electric Power Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of AEP opened at $106.05 on Friday. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 52-week low of $79.16 and a 52-week high of $107.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $97.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $98.37. The stock has a market cap of $56.55 billion, a PE ratio of 18.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.58.

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 the consensus estimate 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 in the previous year, the firm posted $1.23 EPS. Research analysts forecast that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a dividend of $0.93 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.51%. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is 66.43%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America raised shares of American Electric Power from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $98.00 to $104.00 in a report on Monday, January 13th. Scotiabank lowered shares of American Electric Power from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $105.00 to $102.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $102.00 price target (down previously from $109.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $109.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $98.46.

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.