Eastern Bank Raises Holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Key Points

• Eastern Bank increased its stake in American Electric Power Company by 71.4% during the first quarter, owning approximately $40.55 million worth of shares.
• American Electric Power reported an EPS of $1.54 for the last quarter, exceeding analyst estimates by $0.14, and showed an 8.7% year-over-year revenue growth.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.93, representing an annualized dividend yield of 3.41%, with a payout ratio of 71.68%.

Eastern Bank increased its position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP - Free Report) by 71.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 371,092 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 154,616 shares during the quarter. Eastern Bank owned 0.07% of American Electric Power worth $40,549,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Clarius Group LLC grew its stake in American Electric Power by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Clarius Group LLC now owns 3,966 shares of the company's stock worth $433,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Safeguard Investment Advisory Group LLC grew its stake in American Electric Power by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Safeguard Investment Advisory Group LLC now owns 2,414 shares of the company's stock worth $223,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC grew its stake in American Electric Power by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC now owns 3,468 shares of the company's stock worth $379,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Ascent Group LLC lifted its position in American Electric Power by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 27,889 shares of the company's stock worth $2,572,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the period. Finally, Dark Forest Capital Management LP lifted its position in American Electric Power by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP now owns 4,537 shares of the company's stock worth $418,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. 75.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Mizuho set a $116.00 price target on American Electric Power and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday. Raymond James Financial restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $122.00 target price (up previously from $115.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on American Electric Power from $114.00 to $113.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Citigroup upped their target price on American Electric Power from $102.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Scotiabank upped their target price on American Electric Power from $102.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $111.29.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Quinton S. Lies sold 10,141 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.68, for a total value of $1,041,277.88. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 9,658 shares in the company, valued at $991,683.44. This represents a 51.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP David Matthew Feinberg sold 8,058 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 17th. The stock was 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 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 sold 34,314 shares of company stock valued at $3,508,293 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.07% of the company's stock.

American Electric Power Price Performance

Shares of AEP stock traded down $0.37 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $112.78. The company had a trading volume of 367,535 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,570,467. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.42. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $104.39 and a 200-day moving average of $103.82. The company has a market capitalization of $60.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.47, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.42. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 12-month low of $89.91 and a 12-month high of $114.38.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $5.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.85 billion. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.98% and a net margin of 17.68%. The business's revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.25 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. American Electric Power's dividend payout ratio is 54.39%.

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.