American Equity Investment Life (NYSE:AEL) Now Covered by Analysts at StockNews.com

StockNews.com started coverage on shares of American Equity Investment Life (NYSE:AEL) in a report published on Sunday morning. The brokerage issued a hold rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Separately, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of American Equity Investment Life from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a market perform rating in a report on Friday, February 16th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, According to MarketBeat, American Equity Investment Life presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $55.33.

American Equity Investment Life Stock Performance

NYSE AEL opened at $56.47 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $56.14 and its 200-day moving average is $55.61. American Equity Investment Life has a 12-month low of $37.54 and a 12-month high of $57.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.34, a current ratio of 0.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The firm has a market cap of $4.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.39 and a beta of 0.78.

American Equity Investment Life Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared an annual dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 15th were issued a $0.38 dividend. This is a positive change from American Equity Investment Life’s previous annual dividend of $0.02. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 12th. This represents a dividend yield of 0.68%. American Equity Investment Life’s dividend payout ratio is presently 17.76%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Equity Investment Life

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Blackstone Inc. bought a new position in shares of American Equity Investment Life in the 1st quarter worth $1,137,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of American Equity Investment Life by 8.3% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 38,630 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,172,000 after buying an additional 2,945 shares during the last quarter. Absolute Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. bought a new position in shares of American Equity Investment Life in the 1st quarter worth $17,804,000. GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC. increased its holdings in shares of American Equity Investment Life by 297.8% in the 1st quarter. GABELLI & Co INVESTMENT ADVISERS INC. now owns 136,450 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,671,000 after buying an additional 102,150 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gabelli Funds LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Equity Investment Life by 273.2% in the 1st quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 127,370 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,161,000 after buying an additional 93,240 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.98% of the company’s stock.

American Equity Investment Life Company Profile

American Equity Investment Life Holding Company, through its subsidiaries, provides life insurance products in the United States. The company issues fixed index and rate annuities, as well as single premium immediate annuities. It markets its products through independent agents, including independent marketing organizations, broker/dealers, banks, and registered investment advisors.