American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) Given New $104.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) had its price target trimmed by Morgan Stanley from $109.00 to $104.00 in a research note released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on AEP. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on American Electric Power from $99.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of American Electric Power in a report on Friday, September 20th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $107.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $98.00.

American Electric Power Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ AEP opened at $98.10 on Friday. American Electric Power has a 52-week low of $75.22 and a 52-week high of $105.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.57. The stock has a market cap of $52.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.55. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $98.97 and a 200 day moving average price of $95.59.

American Electric Power Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.93 per share. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.79%. This is a positive change from American Electric Power’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 74.55%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Electric Power

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in American Electric Power by 57.2% in the second quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 283 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of American Electric Power by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 5,286 shares of the company’s stock worth $464,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. XML Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. XML Financial LLC now owns 2,921 shares of the company’s stock valued at $300,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the period. Garrison Asset Management LLC grew its stake in American Electric Power by 0.6% during the third quarter. Garrison Asset Management LLC now owns 19,009 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,950,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the period. Finally, Roanoke Asset Management Corp NY increased its holdings in American Electric Power by 2.2% in the third quarter. Roanoke Asset Management Corp NY now owns 5,025 shares of the company’s stock worth $516,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

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.