American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) Cut to Neutral at Bank of America

Bank of America cut shares of American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) from a buy rating to a neutral rating in a report issued on Monday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. The firm currently has $122.00 price objective on the stock, down from their previous price objective of $131.00.

Several other analysts also recently commented on the company. TD Cowen raised American Electric Power to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Siebert Williams Shank started coverage on American Electric Power in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $137.00 price target for the company. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded American Electric Power from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $128.00 to $137.00 in a research note on Monday, November 17th. BMO Capital Markets set a $126.00 price objective on shares of American Electric Power in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $132.00 to $139.00 in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, American Electric Power presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $127.29.

American Electric Power Trading Up 1.3%

NASDAQ AEP opened at $118.11 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. American Electric Power has a 52 week low of $94.53 and a 52 week high of $124.80. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $117.96 and a 200-day moving average price of $113.80. The company has a market cap of $63.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.63.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The company reported $1.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.81 by ($0.01). American Electric Power had a net margin of 17.23% and a return on equity of 11.00%. The business had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.65 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.85 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.9% compared to the same quarter last year. American Electric Power has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.850-5.95 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that American Electric Power will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Monday, November 10th were issued a $0.95 dividend. This is a boost from American Electric Power’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 10th. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is presently 55.39%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Electric Power news, Director Benjamin G. S. Fowke III sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $115.07, for a total value of $575,350.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 25,898 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,980,082.86. This trade represents a 16.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Electric Power

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in American Electric Power by 330.2% in the third quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 228 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in American Electric Power during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC bought a new stake in American Electric Power during the third quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Advantage Trust Co boosted its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 57.1% in the 2nd quarter. Advantage Trust Co now owns 275 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American Electric Power Company Profile

American Electric Power (NASDAQ: AEP) is a major investor-owned electric utility headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. The company is primarily engaged in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity, operating a diverse portfolio of power plants and an extensive high-voltage transmission network. AEP serves retail customers through its regulated utility subsidiaries and provides wholesale power and grid services across multiple regional markets in the United States.

Operations span the full utility value chain: AEP owns and operates generation assets that include fossil-fuel, natural gas, nuclear and hydropower facilities, and it has been adding renewable resources to its mix.