BMO Capital Markets Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) Stock

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) had its target price boosted by investment analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $107.00 to $111.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets’ price target indicates a potential upside of 5.56% from the company’s current price.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the stock. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $100.00 to $99.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Bank of America boosted 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $102.00 target price (down previously from $109.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Scotiabank downgraded shares of American Electric Power from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $105.00 to $102.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $108.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $100.77.

American Electric Power Trading Up 1.2 %

AEP opened at $105.15 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $102.58 and its 200-day moving average is $99.13. American Electric Power has a 52-week low of $79.16 and a 52-week high of $109.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.50.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.27% and a net margin of 15.08%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.23 earnings per share. Analysts expect that American Electric Power will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Electric Power

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AEP. Fire Capital Management LLC bought a new position in American Electric Power in the 4th quarter valued at about $464,000. 111 Capital bought a new stake in American Electric Power during the fourth quarter worth approximately $347,000. Thoma Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in American Electric Power in the fourth quarter worth approximately $743,000. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC boosted its stake in American Electric Power by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 23,207 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,140,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Anchor Pointe Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the 4th quarter valued at $229,000. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.