South Dakota Investment Council Acquires 900 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

South Dakota Investment Council lifted its holdings in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 4.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,362 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 900 shares during the quarter. South Dakota Investment Council’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $1,573,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. BLB&B Advisors LLC boosted its stake in American Electric Power by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. BLB&B Advisors LLC now owns 3,405 shares of the company’s stock valued at $277,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the period. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC boosted its stake in American Electric Power by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 3,150 shares of the company’s stock valued at $237,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the period. CENTRAL TRUST Co boosted its stake in American Electric Power by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 14,598 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,186,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the period. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in American Electric Power by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,715 shares of the company’s stock valued at $355,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nicolet Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in American Electric Power by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,996 shares of the company’s stock valued at $220,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American Electric Power Price Performance

Shares of AEP opened at $86.37 on Thursday. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 12-month low of $69.38 and a 12-month high of $94.73. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $83.34 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $80.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. The stock has a market cap of $45.48 billion, a PE ratio of 20.32, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.51.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by ($0.03). American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.04% and a net margin of 11.64%. The firm had revenue of $4.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.05 EPS. American Electric Power’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be issued 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 4.08%. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is presently 82.82%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AEP has been the subject of several analyst reports. Guggenheim cut American Electric Power from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $81.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Monday, January 22nd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH cut American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $75.50 to $73.00 in a report on Friday, March 8th. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on American Electric Power from $92.00 to $86.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Barclays boosted their price target on American Electric Power from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Mizuho cut American Electric Power from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $83.00 price target for the company. in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $86.08.

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.