Atria Investments Inc Raises Holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Atria Investments Inc boosted its position in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP - Free Report) by 5.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 86,893 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,534 shares during the period. Atria Investments Inc's holdings in American Electric Power were worth $9,495,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in American Electric Power by 14.8% in the 1st quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,331 shares of the company's stock valued at $364,000 after purchasing an additional 430 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the first quarter valued at approximately $262,000. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the first quarter valued at $205,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of American Electric Power by 24.5% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 19,678 shares of the company's stock worth $2,150,000 after acquiring an additional 3,867 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of American Electric Power by 26.1% during the first 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 period. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company's stock.

American Electric Power Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of AEP stock traded up $0.82 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $109.79. The stock had a trading volume of 2,282,337 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,699,015. The company has a current ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.65 billion, a PE ratio of 21.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.42. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $103.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $103.33. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 52-week low of $89.91 and a 52-week high of $110.51.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $5.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.33 billion. American Electric Power had a net margin of 13.73% and a return on equity of 11.68%. The business's revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.27 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect 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 will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be given a $0.93 dividend. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.39%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 8th. American Electric Power's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 71.68%.

Insider Transactions at American Electric Power

In other American Electric Power news, EVP Quinton S. Lies sold 10,141 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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. This represents a 51.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP David Matthew Feinberg sold 8,058 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.74, for a total transaction of $819,820.92. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 10,274 shares in the company, valued at $1,045,276.76. This represents a 43.96% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 34,314 shares of company stock valued at $3,508,293. Corporate insiders own 0.07% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AEP has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays raised their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $95.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price 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 upped their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $109.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Citigroup upped their price target on American Electric Power from $102.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on American Electric Power from $107.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $108.31.

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.