Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. Lowers Stock Holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. lowered its position in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 46.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,465 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,288 shares during the period. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc.’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $151,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AEP. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC raised its position in American Electric Power by 10,177.1% in the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 1,982,444 shares of the company’s stock worth $203,399,000 after purchasing an additional 1,963,154 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp grew its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 542.4% during the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 2,282,571 shares of the company’s stock valued at $193,541,000 after buying an additional 1,927,234 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI increased its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 221.9% in the first quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,715,346 shares of the company’s stock worth $157,140,000 after buying an additional 1,182,451 shares during the period. Zimmer Partners LP lifted its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 578.2% in the 1st quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 975,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $83,948,000 after acquiring an additional 831,235 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in American Electric Power by 9.9% during the 1st quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 8,586,577 shares of the company’s stock valued at $739,303,000 after acquiring an additional 776,965 shares during the period. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Electric Power Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AEP opened at $98.40 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a current ratio of 0.65. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $100.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $94.65. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 52-week low of $74.97 and a 52-week high of $105.18.

American Electric Power Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.93 per share. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.78%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. This is a boost from American Electric Power’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is 70.12%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on AEP shares. Barclays lifted their price target on American Electric Power from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $109.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Guggenheim increased their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $98.43.

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.