Lazard Asset Management LLC Has $591.79 Million Stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 51.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,416,474 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,165,888 shares during the quarter. American Electric Power accounts for about 0.9% of Lazard Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $591,791,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AEP. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ bought a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the fourth quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new position in American Electric Power during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AEP has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Barclays upped their target price on American Electric Power from $95.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $102.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $109.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on American Electric Power from $111.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Electric Power currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $105.77.

American Electric Power Trading Down 0.5%

NASDAQ AEP opened at $104.68 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $105.65 and a 200 day simple moving average of $100.26. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $85.93 and a 12 month high of $110.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.69, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.45.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.14. American Electric Power had a net margin of 15.08% and a return on equity of 11.27%. The company had revenue of $5.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.33 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.27 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be issued a $0.93 dividend. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.55%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 9th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is presently 71.68%.

American Electric Power 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.