Financial Counselors Inc. Has $9.88 Million Position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Financial Counselors Inc. raised its position in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP - Free Report) by 37.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 90,429 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 24,865 shares during the period. Financial Counselors Inc.'s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $9,881,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of American Electric Power by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 51,690,606 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,767,425,000 after purchasing an additional 763,813 shares in the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 15,060,525 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,389,032,000 after purchasing an additional 543,054 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in American Electric Power by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,808,003 shares of the company's stock worth $1,178,174,000 after purchasing an additional 283,311 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 9.1% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 8,603,600 shares of the company's stock valued at $793,510,000 after purchasing an additional 716,229 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 7,047,428 shares of the company's stock worth $649,983,000 after buying an additional 85,756 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company's stock.

American Electric Power Trading Up 0.8%

AEP traded up $0.78 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $104.74. 2,201,415 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,225,229. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.42. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a one year low of $87.51 and a one year high of $110.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.18, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.42. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $103.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $102.06.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP - Get Free Report) last announced 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 return on equity of 11.68% and a net margin of 13.73%. The business had revenue of $5.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.33 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.27 EPS. American Electric Power's revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at American Electric Power

In other news, EVP Quinton S. Lies sold 10,141 shares of American Electric Power stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 19th. The stock was 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 directly owned 9,658 shares in the company, valued at approximately $991,683.44. The trade was a 51.22% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP David Matthew Feinberg sold 8,058 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 10,274 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,045,276.76. This trade represents a 43.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 ninety days. Insiders own 0.07% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on AEP. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $102.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of 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 upped their price target 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, Barclays upped their target price on American Electric Power from $95.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $108.31.

About American Electric Power

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.