American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) Holdings Lowered by United Services Automobile Association

United Services Automobile Association cut its stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 4.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 12,506 shares of the company’s stock after selling 631 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $1,153,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AEP. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans boosted its stake in American Electric Power by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 27,874 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,860,000 after purchasing an additional 1,131 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in American Electric Power during the third quarter valued at about $377,000. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in American Electric Power by 15.0% during the third quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 21,429 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,199,000 after acquiring an additional 2,790 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI acquired a new position in American Electric Power during the third quarter worth about $207,000. Finally, King Luther Capital Management Corp raised its position in American Electric Power by 10.7% in the third quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 6,924 shares of the company’s stock worth $710,000 after acquiring an additional 669 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on AEP shares. Guggenheim raised shares of American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $108.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 10th. Scotiabank cut American Electric Power from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $105.00 to $102.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $102.00 price objective (down from $109.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, American Electric Power has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $99.92.

American Electric Power Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ AEP opened at $105.11 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.10 billion, a PE ratio of 18.77, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.50. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a one year low of $79.16 and a one year high of $109.52. The company has a current ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $101.89 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $99.04.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates 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 prior year, the firm earned $1.23 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were issued a dividend of $0.93 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.54%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is 66.43%.

About American Electric Power

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.