Sonora Investment Management Group LLC Increases Stock Position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Sonora Investment Management Group LLC boosted its stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 6.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,389 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. Sonora Investment Management Group LLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $220,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. XML Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 3.8% in the third quarter. XML Financial LLC now owns 2,921 shares of the company’s stock valued at $300,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. PSI Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 10.6% in the fourth quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 1,113 shares of the company’s stock valued at $103,000 after buying an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Garrison Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 0.6% in the third quarter. Garrison Asset Management LLC now owns 19,009 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,950,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Roanoke Asset Management Corp NY increased its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 2.2% during the third quarter. Roanoke Asset Management Corp NY now owns 5,025 shares of the company’s stock worth $516,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the period. Finally, First United Bank & Trust increased its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 17.1% during the third quarter. First United Bank & Trust now owns 766 shares of the company’s stock worth $79,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the period. 75.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on AEP shares. Bank of America upgraded shares of 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 note on Monday, January 13th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley dropped 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 note on Friday, November 22nd. Guggenheim upgraded shares of American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, American Electric Power has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $98.00.

American Electric Power Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ AEP opened at $98.36 on Friday. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 12-month low of $75.22 and a 12-month high of $105.18. The company has a market capitalization of $52.34 billion, a PE ratio of 19.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.78 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. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $95.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $97.48.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a $0.93 dividend. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.78%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 10th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.