American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) Price Target Raised to $114.00

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) had its price target raised by Bank of America from $108.00 to $114.00 in a research report report published on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the stock.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on AEP. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $109.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 22nd. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of 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. Scotiabank lowered shares of American Electric Power from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $105.00 to $102.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $102.00 target price (down previously from $109.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $99.92.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

NASDAQ AEP opened at $106.21 on Tuesday. American Electric Power has a 52-week low of $79.16 and a 52-week high of $109.52. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $101.66 and a 200 day simple moving average of $99.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a current ratio of 0.44. The company has a market capitalization of $56.68 billion, a PE ratio of 18.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.50.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.24. American Electric Power had a net margin of 15.08% and a return on equity of 11.27%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.23 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that American Electric Power will post 5.87 EPS for the current year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th were given a dividend of $0.93 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 10th. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.50%. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is presently 66.43%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Electric Power

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 3.5% during the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 12,627 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,296,000 after acquiring an additional 426 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 4.2% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 27,874 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,860,000 after acquiring an additional 1,131 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the third quarter worth approximately $377,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 14.1% during the third quarter. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,673 shares of the company’s stock worth $582,000 after acquiring an additional 702 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Advisory Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 7.2% during the third quarter. Meeder Advisory Services Inc. now owns 13,090 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,343,000 after acquiring an additional 882 shares in the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.