Proficio Capital Partners LLC Makes New $149,000 Investment in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 148,859 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $149,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in American Electric Power during the third quarter worth $25,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Decker Retirement Planning Inc. purchased a new stake in American Electric Power in the 4th quarter valued at about $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American Electric Power Trading Up 1.7 %

AEP opened at $106.96 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $102.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $99.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 0.44 and a quick ratio of 0.31. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $79.16 and a 12 month high of $109.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.10, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.50.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.24. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.27% and a net margin of 15.08%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.23 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a $0.93 dividend. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.48%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is presently 66.43%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on AEP shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $102.00 price target (down from $109.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Scotiabank cut shares of American Electric Power from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $105.00 to $102.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Bank of America boosted their target price on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Guggenheim raised American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $100.77.

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.