American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) Stock Position Lessened by Boston Partners

Boston Partners lowered its position in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 16.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,249,494 shares of the company’s stock after selling 246,672 shares during the quarter. Boston Partners’ holdings in American Electric Power were worth $115,256,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. DAVENPORT & Co LLC boosted its stake in American Electric Power by 6.1% during 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 in the last quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in American Electric Power by 22.4% during the fourth quarter. Secure Asset Management LLC now owns 23,916 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,206,000 after buying an additional 4,370 shares in the last quarter. Grove Bank & Trust boosted its stake in American Electric Power by 436.9% during the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 7,092 shares of the company’s stock valued at $654,000 after buying an additional 5,771 shares in the last quarter. J2 Capital Management Inc acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the 4th quarter valued at $419,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of American Electric Power by 3.1% in the 3rd 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 period. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American Electric Power Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of American Electric Power stock opened at $105.99 on Wednesday. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 1 year low of $79.16 and a 1 year high of $109.52. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $101.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $98.95. 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 $56.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.50.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates 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 posted $1.23 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $0.93 per share. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 10th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.43%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on AEP shares. Barclays decreased their price target on American Electric Power from $100.00 to $99.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Bank of America increased their price target on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $102.00 price target (down previously from $109.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Scotiabank lowered American Electric Power from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $105.00 to $102.00 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $99.23.

About American Electric Power

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.