American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) Price Target Increased to $104.00 by Analysts at Wells Fargo & Company

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) had its price target lifted by research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company from $98.00 to $104.00 in a report issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company‘s target price would suggest a potential upside of 3.32% from the company’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Scotiabank upped their price objective on American Electric Power from $99.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on American Electric Power from $109.00 to $114.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 3rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $102.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Guggenheim increased their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, American Electric Power currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $98.14.

American Electric Power Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ AEP traded up $1.00 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $100.66. 549,705 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,134,647. The company’s 50 day moving average is $100.27 and its 200 day moving average is $93.06. American Electric Power has a one year low of $72.01 and a one year high of $105.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.06 billion, a PE ratio of 18.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.48.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $4.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.74 billion. American Electric Power had a net margin of 13.52% and a return on equity of 11.31%. The business’s revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.13 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that American Electric Power will post 5.6 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Electric Power

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in American Electric Power by 35.7% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 7,190 shares of the company’s stock worth $584,000 after purchasing an additional 1,892 shares in the last quarter. Quadrature Capital Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the fourth quarter worth $559,000. First Hawaiian Bank grew its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 408.9% during the first quarter. First Hawaiian Bank now owns 15,904 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,369,000 after buying an additional 12,779 shares during the last quarter. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Finally, Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its position in shares of American Electric Power by 47.7% in the 1st quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 53,959 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,646,000 after acquiring an additional 17,424 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

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.