Park Avenue Securities LLC Raises Stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP - Free Report) by 9.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 32,867 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 2,972 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC's holdings in American Electric Power were worth $3,591,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AEP. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ purchased a new stake in American Electric Power in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in American Electric Power in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Bank of New Hampshire acquired a new stake in American Electric Power during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new position in American Electric Power during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in American Electric Power in the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.24% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at American Electric Power

In other news, EVP Quinton S. Lies sold 10,141 shares of the company's 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 now owns 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP David Matthew Feinberg sold 8,058 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.49, for a total transaction of $817,806.42. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 18,332 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,860,514.68. The trade was a 30.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 26,256 shares of company stock valued at $2,688,472. 0.07% of the stock is owned by insiders.

American Electric Power Price Performance

AEP traded up $0.07 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $101.94. 2,193,082 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,197,595. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 1 year low of $85.93 and a 1 year high of $110.48. The company has a market capitalization of $54.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.42. The business's 50 day moving average price is $104.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $101.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a current ratio of 0.44 and a quick ratio of 0.31.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.54 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.14. The firm had revenue of $5.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.33 billion. American Electric Power had a net margin of 15.08% and a return on equity of 11.27%. The firm's revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.27 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th were paid a dividend of $0.93 per share. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.65%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 9th. American Electric Power's payout ratio is currently 71.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on AEP. Wells Fargo & Company increased 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 research note on Wednesday, May 7th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on American Electric Power from $111.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $109.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, June 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Electric Power has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $107.75.

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.