American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) Shares Bought by Highland Capital Management LLC

Highland Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 64,096 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 470 shares during the quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $5,206,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Penserra Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in American Electric Power in the first quarter worth $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new position in American Electric Power in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new position in American Electric Power in the second quarter worth $26,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in American Electric Power in the first quarter worth $28,000. Finally, FSC Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in American Electric Power by 222.0% in the third quarter. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 351 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American Electric Power Trading Up 2.8 %

Shares of AEP opened at $84.80 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $80.93 and its 200 day moving average price is $79.31. The stock has a market capitalization of $44.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.51. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $69.38 and a 1-year high of $96.05. The company has a current ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.26 by ($0.03). American Electric Power had a net margin of 11.64% and a return on equity of 11.04%. The business had revenue of $4.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.12 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.05 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.54 earnings per share for the current year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Investors of record on Friday, February 9th were issued a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 8th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.15%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 82.82%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Cfra reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $92.00 target price (up from $90.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Barclays reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $83.00 target price (down from $84.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. StockNews.com cut American Electric Power from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on American Electric Power from $87.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH cut American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their target price for the company from $75.50 to $73.00 in a research note on Friday, March 8th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $87.08.

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.