Valley National Advisers Inc. Sells 208 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Valley National Advisers Inc. cut its holdings in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 22.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 726 shares of the company’s stock after selling 208 shares during the period. Valley National Advisers Inc.’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $74,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 57.2% during the second quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 283 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in American Electric Power by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 5,286 shares of the company’s stock worth $464,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Stockton increased its position in American Electric Power by 2.2% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of Stockton now owns 5,062 shares of the company’s stock valued at $444,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. First United Bank & Trust raised its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 17.1% in the third quarter. First United Bank & Trust now owns 766 shares of the company’s stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 3.9% in the first quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 3,084 shares of the company’s stock worth $266,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Electric Power Stock Up 0.9 %

American Electric Power stock opened at $99.11 on Tuesday. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $74.37 and a fifty-two week high of $105.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.39, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.54. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $100.71 and its 200 day simple moving average is $94.07.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $4.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.74 billion. American Electric Power had a net margin of 13.52% and a return on equity of 11.31%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.13 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.6 EPS for the current year.

American Electric Power Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be issued a $0.93 dividend. This is an increase from American Electric Power’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is 69.02%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $109.00 to $114.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 3rd. Scotiabank boosted their target price on American Electric Power from $99.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Guggenheim raised their price target on American Electric Power from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on American Electric Power in a report on Friday, September 20th. They set a “hold” rating and a $107.00 price objective for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $98.43.

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.