Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Grows Position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 245,375 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 3,645 shares during the period. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $20,661,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Penserra Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in American Electric Power during the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. AXS Investments LLC purchased a new stake in American Electric Power during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Dark Forest Capital Management LP lifted its position in shares of American Electric Power by 91.9% during the fourth quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP now owns 284 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN grew its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 66.7% in the first quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN now owns 300 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.68% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on AEP shares. StockNews.com raised shares of American Electric Power from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on American Electric Power in a report on Wednesday, June 7th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $98.00 target price for the company. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on American Electric Power from $103.00 to $96.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, June 30th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on American Electric Power from $101.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, August 23rd. Finally, UBS Group lowered shares of American Electric Power from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $105.00 to $92.00 in a research note on Tuesday, June 6th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $94.97.

American Electric Power Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AEP traded down $0.56 during trading on Friday, hitting $80.04. 4,598,042 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,926,140. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 0.61 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $81.65 and its 200-day moving average price is $85.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.74, a PEG ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.46. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 12-month low of $75.47 and a 12-month high of $101.15.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 27th. The company reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $4.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.70 billion. American Electric Power had a net margin of 10.20% and a return on equity of 10.44%. American Electric Power’s revenue was down 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.20 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 8th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 10th were given a $0.83 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 9th. This represents a $3.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.15%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 86.01%.

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.