AQR Capital Management LLC Boosts Stock Position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 37.1% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 189,119 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 51,217 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $16,593,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in American Electric Power by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 5,286 shares of the company’s stock valued at $464,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Stockton increased its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of Stockton now owns 5,062 shares of the company’s stock worth $444,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 3.9% in the first quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 3,084 shares of the company’s stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Addison Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of American Electric Power by 14.8% during the second quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 902 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of American Electric Power in a research note on Friday, September 20th. They set a “hold” rating and a $107.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $101.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $99.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on American Electric Power from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price objective on American Electric Power from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, American Electric Power currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $96.43.

American Electric Power Stock Down 0.4 %

NASDAQ AEP opened at $102.22 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $100.05 and its 200-day moving average price is $91.97. The company has a market capitalization of $53.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 52 week low of $69.38 and a 52 week high of $105.18.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $4.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.74 billion. American Electric Power had a net margin of 13.52% and a return on equity of 11.31%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.13 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.6 earnings per share for the current year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th were paid a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.44%. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is presently 65.31%.

American Electric Power 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.