Affinity Investment Advisors LLC Sells 5,308 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Key Points

• Affinity Investment Advisors LLC has sold 5,308 shares of American Electric Power, reducing its position by 66.9%, resulting in 2,631 shares valued at approximately $287,000.
• Research analysts have adjusted their price targets for American Electric Power, with Barclays raising it to $111.00 and Morgan Stanley lowering it to $113.00, reflecting varied market outlooks.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.93 per share, yielding approximately 3.3%, with the payout ratio standing at 54.39%.

Affinity Investment Advisors LLC lessened its position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP - Free Report) by 66.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,631 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,308 shares during the period. Affinity Investment Advisors LLC's holdings in American Electric Power were worth $287,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 14.8% during the 1st quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,331 shares of the company's stock worth $364,000 after buying an additional 430 shares during the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the 1st quarter worth about $262,000. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the 1st quarter worth about $205,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 24.5% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 19,678 shares of the company's stock worth $2,150,000 after buying an additional 3,867 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 26.1% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 355,516 shares of the company's stock worth $38,848,000 after buying an additional 73,488 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

AEP has been the subject of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley cut 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. Barclays raised their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $107.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $102.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. One research 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 MarketBeat, American Electric Power presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $111.29.

Insider Activity at American Electric Power

In other news, EVP David Matthew Feinberg sold 8,058 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.74, for a total value of $819,820.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 10,274 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,045,276.76. The trade was a 43.96% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Quinton S. Lies sold 10,141 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 19th. The shares were 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 owned 9,658 shares of the company's stock, valued at $991,683.44. The trade was a 51.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 34,314 shares of company stock valued at $3,508,293 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.07% of the company's stock.

American Electric Power Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AEP opened at $111.99 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $106.71 and a 200-day moving average of $105.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $59.89 billion, a PE ratio of 16.37, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $89.91 and a 12 month high of $115.36.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $5.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.85 billion. American Electric Power had a net margin of 17.68% and a return on equity of 11.55%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.25 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be given a $0.93 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 8th. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. American Electric Power's payout ratio is presently 54.39%.

American Electric Power 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.

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