American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) Stock Holdings Lifted by Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 3.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,284,891 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 101,691 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $302,966,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AEP. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in American Electric Power during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the third quarter valued at $33,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in American Electric Power during the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in American Electric Power in the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Decker Retirement Planning Inc. acquired a new stake in American Electric Power during the 4th quarter worth about $49,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on AEP. Scotiabank downgraded American Electric Power from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $105.00 to $102.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Guggenheim raised shares of American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $100.00 to $99.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $102.00 price objective (down previously from $109.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Electric Power presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $98.46.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AEP opened at $103.39 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $98.75 and its 200-day simple moving average is $98.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.44. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 52 week low of $79.16 and a 52 week high of $109.52. The firm has a market cap of $55.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.46, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.50.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.24. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.27% and a net margin of 15.08%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.23 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 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, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a dividend of $0.93 per share. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.60%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is 66.43%.

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.