Rothschild Investment LLC Raises Position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Rothschild Investment LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 6.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 5,306 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 304 shares during the period. Rothschild Investment LLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $489,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of AEP. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in American Electric Power during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new position in American Electric Power in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in American Electric Power in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the third quarter worth approximately $48,000. 75.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

American Electric Power Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AEP opened at $107.70 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $97.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $98.20. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $79.16 and a fifty-two week high of $107.84. The company has a market capitalization of $57.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.23, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.44.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.24. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.27% and a net margin of 15.08%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.23 EPS. 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Investors of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a $0.93 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.45%. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is currently 66.43%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on AEP shares. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of 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. Scotiabank lowered shares of American Electric Power from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $105.00 to $102.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on American Electric Power from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 7th. BMO Capital Markets lowered 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $102.00 price objective (down from $109.00) on shares of American Electric Power 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 six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $98.00.

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.