OLD Republic International Corp Cuts Holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

OLD Republic International Corp lowered its holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP – Get Rating) by 8.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 718,800 shares of the company’s stock after selling 70,000 shares during the quarter. American Electric Power accounts for about 2.1% of OLD Republic International Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. OLD Republic International Corp owned 0.14% of American Electric Power worth $62,140,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AEP. Neo Ivy Capital Management raised its position in American Electric Power by 12.7% during the 2nd quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management now owns 899 shares of the company’s stock valued at $86,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC lifted its stake in American Electric Power by 2.0% in the first quarter. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC now owns 6,010 shares of the company’s stock worth $592,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares during the period. McDonough Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in American Electric Power by 4.3% in the third quarter. McDonough Capital Management Inc now owns 2,892 shares of the company’s stock worth $250,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its position in American Electric Power by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 28,284 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,445,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the period. Finally, Cornerstone Advisory LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Advisory LLC now owns 3,402 shares of the company’s stock valued at $294,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. 74.33% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on AEP. Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of American Electric Power from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $108.00 to $99.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 1st. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on American Electric Power from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 16th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on American Electric Power from $112.00 to $107.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 22nd. Cfra lifted their target price on American Electric Power from $93.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 24th. Finally, Bank of America lowered shares of American Electric Power from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $101.00 to $98.00 in a research report on Monday, December 19th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $100.83.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP David Matthew Feinberg sold 1,004 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.39, for a total value of $90,751.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,717 shares in the company, valued at $1,059,099.63. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other American Electric Power news, EVP Greg B. Hall sold 884 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.99, for a total value of $80,435.16. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 7,331 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $667,047.69. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP David Matthew Feinberg sold 1,004 shares of American Electric Power stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.39, for a total value of $90,751.56. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 11,717 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,059,099.63. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 63,897 shares of company stock valued at $5,723,900. 0.12% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

American Electric Power Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AEP opened at $92.59 on Thursday. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $80.30 and a fifty-two week high of $105.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a current ratio of 0.65. The company has a market cap of $47.58 billion, a PE ratio of 20.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.44. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $91.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $91.28.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP – Get Rating) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 23rd. The company reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $4.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.26 billion. American Electric Power had a net margin of 11.77% and a return on equity of 10.75%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.98 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 10th. Investors of record on Friday, February 10th were paid a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 9th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.59%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 73.61%.

American Electric Power Company Profile

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American Electric Power Co, Inc engages in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity. It operates through the following segments: Vertically Integrated Utilities, Transmission and Distribution Utilities, AEP Transmission Holdco, and Generation and Marketing. The Vertically Integrated Utilities segment covers the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity for sale to retail and wholesale customers.