Ascent Group LLC Sells 1,056 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Ascent Group LLC trimmed its stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 27,787 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,056 shares during the quarter. Ascent Group LLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $2,851,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC grew its position in American Electric Power by 10,177.1% during the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 1,982,444 shares of the company’s stock valued at $203,399,000 after acquiring an additional 1,963,154 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its stake in American Electric Power by 18.8% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,866,952 shares of the company’s stock worth $704,549,000 after acquiring an additional 1,087,163 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates lifted its position in American Electric Power by 51.1% during the second quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 1,844,968 shares of the company’s stock valued at $161,877,000 after buying an additional 623,789 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in American Electric Power by 1,140.5% during the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 456,686 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,070,000 after buying an additional 419,870 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in American Electric Power by 8,396.3% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 351,918 shares of the company’s stock valued at $361,070,000 after buying an additional 347,776 shares during the period. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on AEP shares. Evercore ISI reduced their price target on American Electric Power from $97.00 to $96.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 7th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on American Electric Power from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on American Electric Power in a research report on Friday, September 20th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $107.00 target price on the stock. Barclays dropped their target price on American Electric Power from $100.00 to $99.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, 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 research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $98.20.

American Electric Power Trading Down 1.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AEP opened at $98.22 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $98.72 and its 200 day moving average is $95.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.55. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 1 year low of $75.22 and a 1 year high of $105.18.

American Electric Power Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be issued a $0.93 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. This is a positive change 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%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is currently 74.55%.

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.