Federated Hermes Inc. Sells 160,978 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Federated Hermes Inc. lessened its position in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP - Free Report) by 3.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,673,347 shares of the company's stock after selling 160,978 shares during the quarter. American Electric Power comprises about 0.9% of Federated Hermes Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. Federated Hermes Inc. owned approximately 0.89% of American Electric Power worth $379,569,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in American Electric Power by 222.0% in the third quarter. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 351 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 242 shares during the period. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new position in American Electric Power in the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Penserra Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the first quarter worth about $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Chilton Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company's stock.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AEP traded up $1.32 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $82.56. 3,544,674 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,772,697. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.51. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $82.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $79.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.53. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $69.38 and a fifty-two week high of $94.73.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.26 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $4.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.12 billion. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.04% and a net margin of 11.64%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.05 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 9th were paid a dividend of $0.88 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 8th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.26%. American Electric Power's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.82%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on American Electric Power from $87.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. Barclays increased their price objective on American Electric Power from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday. Mizuho downgraded American Electric Power from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $83.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Thursday, January 11th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH downgraded American Electric Power from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $75.50 to $73.00 in a report on Friday, March 8th. Finally, UBS Group downgraded American Electric Power from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $86.00 to $83.00 in a report on Monday, March 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, American Electric Power presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $86.08.

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.