Alpha Cubed Investments LLC Raises Stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. $AEP

Alpha Cubed Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 1.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 665,602 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,664 shares during the quarter. American Electric Power accounts for about 2.6% of Alpha Cubed Investments LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $74,880,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AEP. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. raised its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. now owns 41,369 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,654,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. SYM FINANCIAL Corp acquired a new stake in American Electric Power in the 3rd quarter valued at $226,000. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC raised its position in American Electric Power by 149.9% in the third quarter. Patton Albertson Miller Group LLC now owns 5,863 shares of the company’s stock valued at $660,000 after purchasing an additional 3,517 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 0.9% during the third quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,241 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,265,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Foundations Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of American Electric Power by 4.4% in the third quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 11,770 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,324,000 after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded American Electric Power from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $128.00 to $137.00 in a report on Monday, November 17th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $123.00 to $125.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $128.00 to $133.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $114.00 to $107.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $111.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, American Electric Power currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $127.39.

American Electric Power Trading Up 0.1%

NASDAQ AEP opened at $119.21 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $63.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 0.69 and a quick ratio of 0.53. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $97.32 and a 12 month high of $124.80. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $117.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $114.85.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The company reported $1.80 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.81 by ($0.01). American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.00% and a net margin of 17.23%.The company had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.65 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.85 EPS. American Electric Power’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 10th will be issued a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 10th. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is currently 55.39%.

Insider Transactions at American Electric Power

In other news, Director Benjamin G. S. Fowke III sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.07, for a total value of $575,350.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 25,898 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,980,082.86. The trade was a 16.18% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.07% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.