Private Advisor Group LLC Sells 2,936 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Private Advisor Group LLC decreased its holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 5.0% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 55,375 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,936 shares during the quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $5,681,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AEP. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 57.2% in the second quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 283 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. Denali Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the first quarter worth $26,000. LRI Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 935.9% in the second quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 404 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 365 shares during the period. Briaud Financial Planning Inc grew its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 52.1% in the second quarter. Briaud Financial Planning Inc now owns 438 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. Finally, Naples Money Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the second quarter worth $44,000. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American Electric Power Price Performance

Shares of American Electric Power stock opened at $98.19 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $100.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $93.88. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 52 week low of $74.37 and a 52 week high of $105.18. The company has a market capitalization of $51.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.22, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.02. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.31% and a net margin of 13.52%. The business had revenue of $4.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.74 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.13 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.6 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th will be given a $0.93 dividend. This is an increase from American Electric Power’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.79%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is currently 69.02%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AEP has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on American Electric Power from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Scotiabank lifted their target price on American Electric Power from $99.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on American Electric Power from $102.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on American Electric Power from $109.00 to $114.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 3rd. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on American Electric Power from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, American Electric Power has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $98.43.

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.