Mather Group LLC. Acquires 5,729 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Mather Group LLC. grew its stake in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP - Free Report) by 220.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,323 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 5,729 shares during the quarter. Mather Group LLC.'s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $909,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of American Electric Power by 14.8% during the 1st quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,331 shares of the company's stock worth $364,000 after purchasing an additional 430 shares in the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management acquired a new position in American Electric Power in the 1st quarter valued at about $262,000. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the 1st quarter valued at about $205,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 24.5% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 19,678 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,150,000 after acquiring an additional 3,867 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 26.1% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 355,516 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,848,000 after acquiring an additional 73,488 shares during the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AEP has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group increased 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 report on Friday, June 6th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on American Electric Power from $107.00 to $114.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Citigroup upped their price target on American Electric Power from $102.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. BMO Capital Markets upped 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, Guggenheim increased their target price on American Electric Power from $109.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, American Electric Power has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $108.31.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

Shares of AEP traded up $0.15 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $103.41. 1,620,520 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,223,733. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $103.29 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $101.89. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $86.83 and a twelve month high of $110.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.42 and a quick ratio of 0.31.

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 for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.33 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.27 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict 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 was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th were given a $0.93 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.60%. American Electric Power's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 71.68%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Quinton S. Lies sold 10,141 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 9,658 shares of the company's stock, valued at $991,683.44. This trade represents a 51.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Matthew Feinberg sold 8,058 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.74, for a total transaction of $819,820.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 10,274 shares in the company, valued at $1,045,276.76. This represents a 43.96% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 34,314 shares of company stock valued at $3,508,293 in the last quarter. 0.07% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.