Ensign Peak Advisors Inc Increases Stock Holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Ensign Peak Advisors Inc lifted its holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 266,718 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,330 shares during the period. Ensign Peak Advisors Inc owned about 0.05% of American Electric Power worth $23,402,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in American Electric Power by 57.2% during the second quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 283 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC bought a new position in American Electric Power in the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new position in American Electric Power during the first quarter valued at $27,000. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the first quarter worth about $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American Electric Power Trading Up 0.4 %

NASDAQ AEP opened at $102.15 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $53.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 12-month low of $69.38 and a 12-month high of $105.18. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $98.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $91.01.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $4.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.74 billion. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.31% and a net margin of 13.52%. American Electric Power’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.13 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.59 earnings per share for the current year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 9th were given a dividend of $0.88 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 9th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.45%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.31%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on AEP shares. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $99.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on American Electric Power in a report on Friday. They issued a “hold” rating and a $107.00 target price for the company. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded American Electric Power from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price target for the company from $73.00 to $86.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 6th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $96.00.

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.