Everstar Asset Management LLC Reduces Stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Everstar Asset Management LLC lessened its stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 27.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 4,974 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,873 shares during the period. Everstar Asset Management LLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $459,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AEP. DAVENPORT & Co LLC raised its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 57,574 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,310,000 after buying an additional 3,288 shares during the period. Secure Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in American Electric Power by 22.4% in the 4th quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC now owns 23,916 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,206,000 after acquiring an additional 4,370 shares during the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust raised its stake in American Electric Power by 436.9% in the 4th quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 7,092 shares of the company’s stock valued at $654,000 after acquiring an additional 5,771 shares during the period. J2 Capital Management Inc bought a new stake in American Electric Power in the 4th quarter valued at about $419,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in American Electric Power by 3.1% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 640,029 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,667,000 after purchasing an additional 19,081 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

Shares of AEP opened at $106.96 on Monday. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 12-month low of $79.16 and a 12-month high of $109.52. The company has a current ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46. The company has a market cap of $57.08 billion, a PE ratio of 19.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.50. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $102.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $99.10.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.24. American Electric Power had a net margin of 15.08% and a return on equity of 11.27%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.23 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast 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 was paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $0.93 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.48%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is presently 66.43%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on AEP shares. Scotiabank downgraded shares of American Electric Power from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $105.00 to $102.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $107.00 to $111.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Guggenheim raised American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $100.77.

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.