EP Wealth Advisors LLC Purchases 1,833 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

EP Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 26.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,857 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,833 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $763,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in American Electric Power in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Denali Advisors LLC bought a new stake in American Electric Power in the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in American Electric Power in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in American Electric Power during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in American Electric Power during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American Electric Power Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of American Electric Power stock traded up $0.61 on Friday, hitting $96.45. 2,253,978 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,257,546. The company has a market capitalization of $50.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.53. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a one year low of $69.38 and a one year high of $97.32. The company has a fifty day moving average of $89.58 and a two-hundred day moving average of $85.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 0.54 and a quick ratio of 0.37.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.02. American Electric Power had a net margin of 14.60% and a return on equity of 11.23%. The business had revenue of $5 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.02 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.11 earnings per share. American Electric Power’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.59 earnings per share for the current year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Friday, August 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.88 per share. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 9th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.31%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $84.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of American Electric Power from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $73.00 to $86.00 in a report on Thursday, June 6th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on American Electric Power from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Scotiabank upped their target price on American Electric Power from $86.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Electric Power currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $88.77.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Electric Power news, EVP Greg B. Hall sold 5,880 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.25, for a total transaction of $518,910.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,385 shares in the company, valued at approximately $563,476.25. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other American Electric Power news, EVP Greg B. Hall sold 5,880 shares of American Electric Power stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.25, for a total transaction of $518,910.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,385 shares in the company, valued at approximately $563,476.25. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Antonio P. Smyth sold 4,898 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total value of $440,820.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,446 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $580,140. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

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.