Morgan Stanley Cuts American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) Price Target to $128.00

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) had its price target trimmed by Morgan Stanley from $135.00 to $128.00 in a research note published on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

AEP has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Barclays decreased their price objective on American Electric Power from $138.00 to $129.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of American Electric Power in a report on Thursday, August 27th. TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of American Electric Power in a research report on Wednesday, September 9th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $141.00 to $139.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $141.00 to $135.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $139.86.

American Electric Power Price Performance

AEP opened at $120.00 on Friday. American Electric Power has a twelve month low of $105.70 and a twelve month high of $140.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $126.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $129.96. The company has a market cap of $65.33 billion, a PE ratio of 20.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.51.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.36 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.48 by ($0.12). American Electric Power had a return on equity of 9.95% and a net margin of 13.78%.The firm had revenue of $5.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.34 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.43 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. American Electric Power has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.250-6.550 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that American Electric Power will post 6.38 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 10th were issued a $0.95 dividend. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 10th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.18%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Kate Dixon sold 2,000 shares of American Electric Power stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.00, for a total transaction of $250,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 15,856 shares in the company, valued at $1,982,000. The trade was a 11.20% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.05% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Electric Power

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AEP. Security National Bank of Sioux City Iowa IA purchased a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $64,000. Wellington Altus USA Inc. increased its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 64.7% during the 2nd quarter. Wellington Altus USA Inc. now owns 3,210 shares of the company’s stock worth $421,000 after buying an additional 1,261 shares during the last quarter. Bullseye Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $335,000. Bouchey Financial Group Ltd. raised its position in shares of American Electric Power by 7.7% during the 2nd quarter. Bouchey Financial Group Ltd. now owns 2,208 shares of the company’s stock valued at $302,000 after buying an additional 158 shares during the period. Finally, Core Capital Management & Research inc. purchased a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $55,000. 75.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About American Electric Power

American Electric Power Company, Inc (NASDAQ:AEP) is an electric utility holding company that generates, transmits and distributes electricity to residential, commercial, industrial and other customers. Its operations include regulated electric utilities, power generation facilities and one of the largest electricity transmission networks in the United States.

AEP provides energy delivery and related utility services through operating companies serving customers across Arkansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia.