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

Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-two brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and thirteen have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $141.3810.

Several analysts recently issued reports on AEP shares. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $130.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Truist Financial dropped their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $148.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 29th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $135.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $141.00 to $148.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of American Electric Power in a report on Monday, June 1st.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of AEP. Activest Wealth Management increased its position in American Electric Power by 72.2% during the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 217 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the period. Optima Capital LLC acquired a new position in American Electric Power during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its stake in American Electric Power by 7,300.0% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 222 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. Costello Asset Management INC boosted its holdings in American Electric Power by 100.0% in the 1st quarter. Costello Asset Management INC now owns 200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Legacy Wealth Managment LLC ID boosted its holdings in American Electric Power by 200.0% in the 4th quarter. Legacy Wealth Managment LLC ID now owns 231 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares during the period. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Electric Power Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of AEP stock opened at $135.90 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $131.30 and its 200 day simple moving average is $127.78. American Electric Power has a twelve month low of $103.03 and a twelve month high of $140.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.53. The company has a market capitalization of $73.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.96, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.52.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The company reported $1.64 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.57 by $0.07. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 10.21% and a net margin of 16.29%.The company had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.72 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.54 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. American Electric Power has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.120-6.420 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that American Electric Power will post 6.35 EPS for the current year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 8th were issued a $0.95 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 8th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.80%.

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.