China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. Purchases 4,503 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP - Free Report) by 52.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 13,170 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,503 shares during the period. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $1,439,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC grew its position in American Electric Power by 7.6% in the 1st quarter. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC now owns 587,411 shares of the company's stock worth $64,186,000 after purchasing an additional 41,477 shares during the last quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. increased its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 37.9% during the 1st quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 90,429 shares of the company's stock worth $9,881,000 after purchasing an additional 24,865 shares during the last quarter. YANKCOM Partnership grew its stake in American Electric Power by 39.9% in the 1st quarter. YANKCOM Partnership now owns 5,636 shares of the company's stock valued at $616,000 after buying an additional 1,607 shares during the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in American Electric Power by 5.9% in the 1st quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 74,537 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,145,000 after purchasing an additional 4,159 shares during the period. Finally, OLD Republic International Corp lifted its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. OLD Republic International Corp now owns 369,300 shares of the company's stock worth $40,353,000 after acquiring an additional 3,000 shares during the period. 75.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Electric Power Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of AEP stock traded up $0.78 on Wednesday, reaching $104.74. 2,201,415 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,225,229. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $103.15 and a two-hundred day moving average of $102.06. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.42 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $87.51 and a 1-year high of $110.48. The stock has a market cap of $55.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.42.

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

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th were given a $0.93 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.55%. American Electric Power's payout ratio is 71.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AEP has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $107.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on American Electric Power in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $115.00 price target for the company. UBS Group raised their target price on American Electric Power from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, June 6th. Guggenheim boosted their target price 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on American Electric Power from $114.00 to $113.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Electric Power currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $108.31.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Electric Power news, EVP Quinton S. Lies sold 10,141 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $102.68, for a total value of $1,041,277.88. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Matthew Feinberg sold 8,058 shares of American Electric Power stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 10,274 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,045,276.76. This represents a 43.96% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 34,314 shares of company stock worth $3,508,293 in the last 90 days. 0.07% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.