LPL Financial LLC Buys 41,879 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 884,628 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 41,879 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC owned 0.17% of American Electric Power worth $77,617,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 57.2% in the 2nd quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 283 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in American Electric Power in the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in American Electric Power in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in American Electric Power in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, YHB Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in American Electric Power in the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of 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. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $95.15.

American Electric Power Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AEP opened at $104.17 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average is $97.39 and its 200 day moving average is $90.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.65. The company has a market capitalization of $55.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.54. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $69.38 and a fifty-two week high of $104.41.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 company had revenue of $4.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.74 billion. American Electric Power had a net margin of 13.52% and a return on equity of 11.31%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.13 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.59 earnings per share for the current year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Friday, August 9th were paid a $0.88 dividend. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 9th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.31%.

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.