American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) is Heathbridge Capital Management Ltd.'s Largest Position

Heathbridge Capital Management Ltd. trimmed its holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP - Free Report) by 2.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 225,400 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,350 shares during the period. American Electric Power accounts for 10.0% of Heathbridge Capital Management Ltd.'s holdings, making the stock its largest position. Heathbridge Capital Management Ltd.'s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $24,629,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ bought a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. EQ Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in American Electric Power in the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC acquired a new position in American Electric Power during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Bank of New Hampshire acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Electric Power news, EVP David Matthew Feinberg sold 8,058 shares of American Electric Power stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.74, for a total transaction of $819,820.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 10,274 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,045,276.76. The trade was a 43.96% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Quinton S. Lies sold 10,141 shares of the business'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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 9,658 shares of the company's stock, valued at $991,683.44. This represents a 51.22% 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 valued at $3,508,293 in the last 90 days. 0.07% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on AEP shares. Guggenheim raised their target price 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. Barclays raised their price objective 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. UBS Group upped their target price on American Electric Power from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on American Electric Power from $111.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on American Electric Power from $102.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, American Electric Power currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $108.31.

American Electric Power Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:AEP traded up $0.52 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $106.01. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,191,942 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,222,935. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.43, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.42. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $102.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $102.52. 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 fifty-two week low of $89.91 and a fifty-two week high of $110.48.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The company reported $1.54 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.40 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $5.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.33 billion. American Electric Power had a net margin of 13.73% and a return on equity of 11.68%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.27 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th were given a $0.93 dividend. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. American Electric Power's payout ratio is currently 71.68%.

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.