Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund Acquires Shares of 48,393 American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund acquired a new stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 48,393 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,246,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of American Electric Power by 57.2% during the 2nd quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 283 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. Denali Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the 1st quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the 1st quarter valued at $37,000. 75.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AEP has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barclays upped their price objective on American Electric Power from $91.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Scotiabank upped their price objective on 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. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on American Electric Power in a research report on Friday, September 20th. They set a “hold” rating and a $107.00 price objective for the company. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on American Electric Power from $109.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Guggenheim upped their price objective on American Electric Power from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, American Electric Power presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $96.79.

American Electric Power Price Performance

American Electric Power stock opened at $100.28 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The company has a market capitalization of $52.86 billion, a PE ratio of 18.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.54. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $69.38 and a 12 month high of $105.18. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $100.37 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $92.23.

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 company had revenue of $4.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.74 billion. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.31% and a net margin of 13.52%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.13 earnings per share. Analysts expect that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.6 EPS for the current year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.51%. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is 65.31%.

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.