Gotham Asset Management LLC Has $215,000 Stock Holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Gotham Asset Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP - Free Report) by 70.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,335 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,508 shares during the period. Gotham Asset Management LLC's holdings in American Electric Power were worth $215,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ purchased a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new position in American Electric Power during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in American Electric Power during the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in American Electric Power during the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new position in American Electric Power during the fourth quarter valued at about $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on AEP. Guggenheim raised their target price on American Electric Power from $109.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Barclays raised their target price on American Electric Power from $95.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Citigroup raised their target price on American Electric Power from $102.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target 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. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $105.69.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

AEP stock traded up $1.08 during trading on Friday, reaching $102.88. 1,888,413 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,210,224. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $85.93 and a twelve month high of $110.48. The company has a market capitalization of $54.96 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.45. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $105.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $100.48. The company has a current ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46.

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 for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.14. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.27% and a net margin of 15.08%. The business had revenue of $5.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.33 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.27 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side 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 will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.93 per share. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.62%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 9th. American Electric Power's payout ratio is 71.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Electric Power

In other American Electric Power 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.07% of the company's stock.

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.