Axxcess Wealth Management LLC Increases Position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Axxcess Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 5.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 39,172 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,042 shares during the period. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $3,613,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in American Electric Power during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $220,983,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 109.5% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,753,250 shares of the company’s stock valued at $385,079,000 after acquiring an additional 1,962,125 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of American Electric Power by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 26,902,755 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,760,223,000 after acquiring an additional 1,114,954 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its stake in American Electric Power by 18.8% during 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 stake in American Electric Power during the third quarter valued at $80,207,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AEP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $109.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $102.00 target price (down from $109.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays cut their price target on American Electric Power from $100.00 to $99.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Scotiabank downgraded American Electric Power from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $105.00 to $102.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $99.23.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

Shares of AEP opened at $105.99 on Wednesday. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 52-week low of $79.16 and a 52-week high of $109.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.52 billion, a PE ratio of 18.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.50. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $101.11 and a 200 day moving average price of $98.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.23 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 10th were paid a $0.93 dividend. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.51%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is presently 66.43%.

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.