Willis Investment Counsel Has $19.55 Million Holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Willis Investment Counsel grew its stake in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP - Free Report) by 15.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 178,900 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 23,300 shares during the quarter. Willis Investment Counsel's holdings in American Electric Power were worth $19,548,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the 1st quarter worth about $1,117,000. Allen Mooney & Barnes Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. Allen Mooney & Barnes Investment Advisors LLC now owns 148,250 shares of the company's stock worth $16,199,000 after purchasing an additional 2,454 shares in the last quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 3.5% in the 1st quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. now owns 504,665 shares of the company's stock worth $55,145,000 after purchasing an additional 16,858 shares in the last quarter. Davis Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the 1st quarter worth approximately $536,000. Finally, Sapient Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the 1st quarter worth approximately $219,000. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American Electric Power Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of American Electric Power stock traded down $0.12 during trading on Friday, hitting $102.90. The stock had a trading volume of 2,388,673 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,207,021. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $104.17 and a 200 day simple moving average of $101.13. The company has a market capitalization of $54.97 billion, a PE ratio of 18.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 1 year low of $85.93 and a 1 year 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, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.40 by $0.14. American Electric Power had a net margin of 15.08% and a return on equity of 11.27%. The firm had revenue of $5.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.27 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 8.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Friday, May 9th were given 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 of this dividend was Friday, May 9th. American Electric Power's payout ratio is presently 71.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AEP has been the topic of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $107.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. 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 report on Tuesday, March 18th. Raymond James initiated coverage on shares of American Electric Power in a report on Friday. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $115.00 target price on the stock. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $109.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $111.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. 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 company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Electric Power currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $108.31.

Insider Activity at American Electric Power

In other American Electric Power news, EVP Quinton S. Lies sold 10,141 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 now directly owns 9,658 shares of the company's stock, valued at $991,683.44. The trade was a 51.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP David Matthew Feinberg sold 8,057 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $102.94, for a total transaction of $829,387.58. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 26,298 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,707,116.12. This represents a 23.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 26,256 shares of company stock valued at $2,688,472. Corporate insiders own 0.07% of the company's stock.

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.