148,859 Shares in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) Bought by Proficio Capital Partners LLC

Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund acquired 148,859 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $149,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AEP. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in American Electric Power in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new stake in American Electric Power during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Decker Retirement Planning Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the fourth quarter worth approximately $49,000. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Electric Power Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of AEP stock opened at $106.96 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $57.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $79.16 and a fifty-two week high of $109.52. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $102.78 and a 200-day simple moving average of $99.15.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24. American Electric Power had a net margin of 15.08% and a return on equity of 11.27%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.23 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on AEP shares. Scotiabank lowered shares of American Electric Power from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $105.00 to $102.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $107.00 to $111.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $102.00 price target (down from $109.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $100.77.

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.