Franklin Resources Inc. Has $431.67 Million Stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Franklin Resources Inc. lessened its position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 16.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,369,608 shares of the company’s stock after selling 879,860 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned 0.82% of American Electric Power worth $431,671,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 57.2% in the second quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 283 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in American Electric Power during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new position in American Electric Power during the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. LRI Investments LLC grew its position in shares of American Electric Power by 935.9% in the 2nd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 404 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 365 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Briaud Financial Planning Inc increased its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 52.1% in the second quarter. Briaud Financial Planning Inc now owns 438 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 150 shares during the period. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays cut their price objective on American Electric Power from $100.00 to $99.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $104.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of American Electric Power in a report on Friday, September 20th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $107.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Scotiabank cut shares of American Electric Power from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and cut their price target for the company from $105.00 to $102.00 in a research report on Thursday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, American Electric Power has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $97.13.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

Shares of American Electric Power stock opened at $92.71 on Friday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $97.50 and a 200 day simple moving average of $96.06. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a one year low of $75.22 and a one year high of $105.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.58, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.55.

American Electric Power Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were issued a dividend of $0.93 per share. This is an increase from American Electric Power’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.01%. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is currently 74.55%.

American Electric Power Company Profile

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.