New Age Alpha Advisors LLC Sells 9,170 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Key Points

• New Age Alpha Advisors LLC reduced its stake in American Electric Power by 44.5%, selling 9,170 shares during the 1st quarter, leaving them with 11,456 shares valued at approximately $1.25 million.
• Other hedge funds have also increased their positions significantly, with Lazard Asset Management lifting its holdings by 51.0% and GAMMA Investing increasing by an astounding 13,499.5% in the same period.
• American Electric Power reported earnings of $1.43 per share, surpassing analyst expectations, with quarterly revenue reaching $5.09 billion, up 11.1% from the previous year.

New Age Alpha Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP - Free Report) by 44.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,456 shares of the company's stock after selling 9,170 shares during the quarter. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC's holdings in American Electric Power were worth $1,252,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of AEP. Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its position in American Electric Power by 51.0% in the fourth quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 6,416,474 shares of the company's stock worth $591,791,000 after purchasing an additional 2,165,888 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in American Electric Power by 13,499.5% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,150,215 shares of the company's stock worth $234,954,000 after purchasing an additional 2,134,404 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in American Electric Power by 4,567.3% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,764,677 shares of the company's stock worth $192,827,000 after purchasing an additional 1,726,868 shares during the period. Cohen & Steers Inc. bought a new position in American Electric Power in the fourth quarter worth $121,605,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in American Electric Power by 27.5% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,120,568 shares of the company's stock worth $472,270,000 after purchasing an additional 1,105,317 shares during the period. 75.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AEP opened at $113.73 on Friday. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $89.91 and a twelve month high of $115.36. The firm has a market cap of $60.82 billion, a PE ratio of 16.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.55. The business has a fifty day moving average of $105.52 and a 200-day moving average of $104.43.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.16. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.55% and a net margin of 17.68%. The company had revenue of $5.09 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.85 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.25 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be paid 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 (DPR) is 54.39%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on AEP. Barclays raised their target price on American Electric Power from $105.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $122.00 target price (up from $115.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. UBS Group raised their target price on American Electric Power from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Guggenheim raised 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on American Electric Power from $114.00 to $113.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $111.29.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP David Matthew Feinberg sold 8,058 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president directly owned 10,274 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,045,276.76. This trade represents a 43.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Quinton S. Lies sold 10,141 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 19th. The shares were 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 owned 9,658 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $991,683.44. This trade represents a 51.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 34,314 shares of company stock valued at $3,508,293. 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.

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