Gabelli Funds LLC Sells 8,800 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Gabelli Funds LLC decreased its stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 669,150 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,800 shares during the period. Gabelli Funds LLC owned about 0.13% of American Electric Power worth $58,711,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in American Electric Power by 57.2% in the 2nd quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 283 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 2.0% in the second quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 5,286 shares of the company’s stock worth $464,000 after purchasing an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Stockton grew its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 2.2% in the second quarter. Bank of Stockton now owns 5,062 shares of the company’s stock worth $444,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew 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 increased its holdings in American Electric Power by 14.8% in the second quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 902 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

Shares of AEP stock opened at $102.15 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 firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $98.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $90.96. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $69.38 and a 12 month high of $105.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.85 billion, a PE ratio of 18.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.54.

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

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Friday, August 9th were given a $0.88 dividend. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.45%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 9th. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is currently 65.31%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on AEP. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on American Electric Power from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Bank of America increased their target price 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. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of 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. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of American Electric Power in a research note on Friday. They set a “hold” rating and a $107.00 target price for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, American Electric Power currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target 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.