Schmidt P J Investment Management Inc. Sells 300 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Schmidt P J Investment Management Inc. lessened its position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 11.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,212 shares of the company’s stock after selling 300 shares during the quarter. Schmidt P J Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $204,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AEP. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 10,177.1% in the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 1,982,444 shares of the company’s stock worth $203,399,000 after buying an additional 1,963,154 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its position in American Electric Power by 109.5% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,753,250 shares of the company’s stock valued at $385,079,000 after buying an additional 1,962,125 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 4.3% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 26,902,755 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,760,223,000 after purchasing an additional 1,114,954 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 18.8% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,866,952 shares of the company’s stock worth $704,549,000 after purchasing an additional 1,087,163 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zacks Investment Management bought a new position in American Electric Power during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $80,207,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

AEP stock opened at $99.39 on Thursday. 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 1 year low of $75.22 and a 1 year high of $105.18. The company has a market cap of $52.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.58. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $95.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $97.67.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be given a dividend of $0.93 per share. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.74%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is currently 74.55%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on AEP shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $102.00 price objective (down from $109.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $109.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Scotiabank downgraded American Electric Power from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $105.00 to $102.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company cut 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 report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Bank of America raised American Electric Power from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $98.00 to $104.00 in a research report on Monday, January 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently 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.