American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) Shares Acquired by Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 4.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,277 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 208 shares during the quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $487,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in American Electric Power during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $48,000. Friedenthal Financial purchased a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Finally, Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new position in American Electric Power in the third quarter worth approximately $50,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American Electric Power Trading Down 2.0 %

AEP opened at $98.05 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $95.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $97.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.41. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 12 month low of $75.22 and a 12 month high of $105.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.65, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.56.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.93 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.79%. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is 74.55%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on AEP. Barclays reduced their target price on American Electric Power from $100.00 to $99.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Bank of America raised shares of American Electric Power from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $98.00 to $104.00 in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $97.00 to $96.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $109.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $98.00.

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.