ProShare Advisors LLC Decreases Stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

ProShare Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 5.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 479,563 shares of the company’s stock after selling 26,137 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC owned 0.09% of American Electric Power worth $40,379,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Penserra Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new position in American Electric Power in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN grew its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 66.7% in the 1st quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN now owns 300 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the period. Chilton Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, Marquette Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in American Electric Power by 84.5% in the second quarter. Marquette Asset Management LLC now owns 369 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.68% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on AEP. Guggenheim reduced their target price on American Electric Power from $96.00 to $85.00 in a research report on Monday, October 9th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on American Electric Power from $97.00 to $93.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 25th. Bank of America cut their price objective on American Electric Power from $91.00 to $77.00 in a report on Thursday, October 12th. Cfra reduced their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $99.00 to $94.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on American Electric Power from $96.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 12th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Electric Power currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $91.37.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

Shares of AEP opened at $77.30 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $76.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $80.86. The company has a market capitalization of $40.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.49. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 52-week low of $69.38 and a 52-week high of $100.32.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 2nd. The company reported $1.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.85 by ($0.08). American Electric Power had a net margin of 11.72% and a return on equity of 10.73%. The company had revenue of $5.30 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.62 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 8th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 10th will be issued a $0.88 dividend. This is an increase from American Electric Power’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.83. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 9th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is presently 80.73%.

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.