First Financial Corp IN Boosts Holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

First Financial Corp IN raised its position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 242.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 671 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 475 shares during the quarter. First Financial Corp IN’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $62,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in American Electric Power in the third quarter worth $25,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the 3rd quarter valued at about $48,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the third quarter valued at about $50,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial purchased a new stake in American Electric Power during the third quarter worth about $50,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AEP has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $102.00 price objective (down from $109.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a report on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Scotiabank downgraded American Electric Power from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $105.00 to $102.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Electric Power has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $98.00.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AEP opened at $94.54 on Tuesday. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $75.22 and a 1-year high of $105.18. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $94.64 and a 200-day simple moving average of $96.74. The firm has a market cap of $50.31 billion, a PE ratio of 18.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.56. 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 Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th were paid a dividend of $0.93 per share. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This is a positive change from American Electric Power’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is currently 74.55%.

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.