American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) Declares $0.93 Quarterly Dividend

American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP - Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, July 22nd, RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be given a dividend of 0.93 per share on Wednesday, September 10th. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.38%.

American Electric Power has a payout ratio of 59.1% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect American Electric Power to earn $6.29 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $3.72 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 59.1%.

American Electric Power Price Performance

Shares of American Electric Power stock traded up $1.62 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $110.16. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,500,729 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,240,928. The stock has a market cap of $58.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.23, a P/E/G ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.42. American Electric Power has a one year low of $89.91 and a one year high of $110.55. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $102.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $102.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.42 and a quick ratio of 0.31.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.54 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.14. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.68% and a net margin of 13.73%. The firm had revenue of $5.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.33 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.27 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that American Electric Power will post 5.87 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. Raymond James Financial started coverage on shares of American Electric Power in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $115.00 price objective on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on American Electric Power from $111.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Guggenheim increased their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $109.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $114.00 to $113.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Electric Power currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $108.31.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Quinton S. Lies sold 10,141 shares of American Electric Power stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.68, for a total transaction of $1,041,277.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 9,658 shares in the company, valued at approximately $991,683.44. The trade was a 51.22% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP David Matthew Feinberg sold 8,058 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.74, for a total transaction of $819,820.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 10,274 shares in the company, valued at $1,045,276.76. The trade was a 43.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 34,314 shares of company stock worth $3,508,293. 0.07% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Electric Power

A hedge fund recently bought a new stake in American Electric Power stock. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 2,941 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $320,000. 75.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About American Electric Power

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.

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