American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) Sets New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $132.78 and last traded at $130.24, with a volume of 4034816 shares. The stock had previously closed at $129.94.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on AEP. Scotiabank raised their price target on American Electric Power from $121.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Williams Trading set a $137.00 price objective on American Electric Power in a report on Thursday, December 18th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $121.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. BTIG Research started coverage on shares of American Electric Power in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. They issued a “neutral” rating for the company. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH decreased their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $124.50 to $117.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $129.83.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $118.14 and its 200 day moving average is $116.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.44, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.62.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $5.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.07 billion. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 10.46% and a net margin of 16.37%.The business’s revenue was up 13.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.24 earnings per share. American Electric Power has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.150-6.450 EPS. On average, analysts predict that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 10th will be given a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 10th. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is 56.72%.

Insider Transactions at American Electric Power

In other news, Director Benjamin G. S. Fowke III sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owned 25,898 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,980,082.86. This represents a 16.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.07% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of American Electric Power

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in AEP. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in American Electric Power by 11.5% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 10,601 shares of the company’s stock worth $978,000 after acquiring an additional 1,095 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the first quarter valued at approximately $320,000. Sivia Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 149.5% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,891 shares of the company’s stock worth $507,000 after buying an additional 2,931 shares in the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 52.6% in the 2nd quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 3,656 shares of the company’s stock worth $379,000 after purchasing an additional 1,260 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in American Electric Power by 2.2% during the second quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 28,166 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,887,000 after purchasing an additional 597 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

About American Electric Power

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.