U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC Grows Position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP - Free Report) by 68.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 159,122 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 64,880 shares during the period. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in American Electric Power were worth $12,924,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of AEP. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC lifted its stake in American Electric Power by 304.8% during the 4th quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 425 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in American Electric Power during the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. JNBA Financial Advisors grew its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 91.6% in the 3rd quarter. JNBA Financial Advisors now owns 479 shares of the company's stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 229 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Byrne Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the third quarter valued at about $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on AEP. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on American Electric Power from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH downgraded American Electric Power from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $75.50 to $73.00 in a research note on Friday, March 8th. StockNews.com upgraded American Electric Power from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Mizuho lowered shares of American Electric Power from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $83.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, January 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Electric Power presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $88.14.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AEP traded up $0.35 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $88.60. 3,332,412 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,215,932. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $69.38 and a 12 month high of $92.88. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $84.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $80.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.50.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.02. American Electric Power had a net margin of 14.60% and a return on equity of 11.23%. The firm had revenue of $5 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.02 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.11 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.58 earnings per share for the current year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be paid a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.97%. American Electric Power's dividend payout ratio is presently 65.31%.

American Electric Power Company 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.