American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) Shares Sold by City Holding Co.

City Holding Co. reduced its position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 6.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,940 shares of the company’s stock after selling 270 shares during the period. City Holding Co.’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $339,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in American Electric Power during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in American Electric Power during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC raised its holdings in American Electric Power by 304.8% in the fourth quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 425 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the period. Finally, Northwest Financial Advisors acquired a new position in American Electric Power during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American Electric Power Price Performance

AEP stock traded up $0.83 during trading on Monday, hitting $87.88. The company had a trading volume of 305,053 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,408,469. The business has a 50 day moving average of $88.20 and a 200 day moving average of $83.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a current ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $69.38 and a fifty-two week high of $93.44.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.02. American Electric Power had a net margin of 14.60% and a return on equity of 11.23%. The business had revenue of $5 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.11 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.58 earnings per share for the current year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th were given a $0.88 dividend. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.01%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 9th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.31%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on AEP shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on American Electric Power from $84.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Cfra restated a “buy” rating and issued a $92.00 price target (up previously from $90.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of American Electric Power from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $73.00 to $86.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 6th. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $86.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $88.62.

Insider Activity at American Electric Power

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

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.