AE Wealth Management LLC Acquires 28,619 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

AE Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP - Free Report) by 18.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 187,047 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 28,619 shares during the quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC's holdings in American Electric Power were worth $20,438,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in American Electric Power by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,808,003 shares of the company's stock worth $1,178,174,000 after purchasing an additional 283,311 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in American Electric Power by 9.1% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 8,603,600 shares of the company's stock worth $793,510,000 after acquiring an additional 716,229 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in American Electric Power by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 7,047,428 shares of the company's stock worth $649,983,000 after acquiring an additional 85,756 shares during the last quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its position in American Electric Power by 51.0% during the 4th quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 6,416,474 shares of the company's stock worth $591,791,000 after acquiring an additional 2,165,888 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in American Electric Power by 27.5% during the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,120,568 shares of the company's stock worth $472,270,000 after acquiring an additional 1,105,317 shares during the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at American Electric Power

In other American Electric Power 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 9,658 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $991,683.44. The trade was a 51.22% decrease in their position. The transaction 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 American Electric Power stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.74, for a total transaction of $819,820.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 10,274 shares of the company's stock, 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. Insiders have sold 34,314 shares of company stock worth $3,508,293 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.07% of the company's stock.

American Electric Power Price Performance

Shares of AEP stock traded up $0.82 on Friday, reaching $109.79. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,282,337 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,552,050. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $103.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $103.20. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 12-month low of $89.91 and a 12-month high of $110.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The company has a market capitalization of $58.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.15, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.42.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $5.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.33 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.27 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be given a dividend of $0.93 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 8th. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.39%. American Electric Power's payout ratio is 71.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AEP has been the topic of several recent research reports. Raymond James Financial began coverage on American Electric Power in a report on Friday, June 13th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $115.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup boosted their price objective on American Electric Power from $102.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on American Electric Power from $114.00 to $113.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on American Electric Power from $107.00 to $114.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Guggenheim increased their price objective on American Electric Power from $109.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $108.31.

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.