American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-one research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, nine have issued a hold recommendation, nine have given a buy recommendation and two have issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $127.2895.

AEP has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. TD Cowen raised shares of American Electric Power to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH increased their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $108.50 to $124.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $111.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $121.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Finally, Williams Trading set a $137.00 price target on American Electric Power in a research note on Thursday, December 18th.

American Electric Power Stock Up 1.3%

NASDAQ:AEP opened at $118.11 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.69, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. American Electric Power has a twelve month low of $94.53 and a twelve month high of $124.80. The company has a market cap of $63.08 billion, a PE ratio of 17.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.63. The company’s 50 day moving average is $117.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $113.80.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The company reported $1.80 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.81 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $6.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.65 billion. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.00% and a net margin of 17.23%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.85 earnings per share. American Electric Power has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.850-5.95 EPS. Analysts anticipate that American Electric Power will post 5.87 EPS for the current year.

American Electric Power Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 10th were issued a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 10th. This is a positive change from American Electric Power’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is 55.39%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Benjamin G. S. Fowke III sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.07, for a total transaction of $575,350.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 25,898 shares in the company, valued at $2,980,082.86. This represents a 16.18% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Electric Power

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in American Electric Power by 330.2% in the 3rd quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 228 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Advantage Trust Co lifted its holdings in American Electric Power by 57.1% in the 2nd quarter. Advantage Trust Co now owns 275 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Montag A & Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in American Electric Power by 166.0% in the 2nd quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 282 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares in the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About American Electric Power

American Electric Power (NASDAQ: AEP) is a major investor-owned electric utility headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. The company is primarily engaged in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity, operating a diverse portfolio of power plants and an extensive high-voltage transmission network. AEP serves retail customers through its regulated utility subsidiaries and provides wholesale power and grid services across multiple regional markets in the United States.

Operations span the full utility value chain: AEP owns and operates generation assets that include fossil-fuel, natural gas, nuclear and hydropower facilities, and it has been adding renewable resources to its mix.