Flputnam Investment Management Co. Boosts Holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Flputnam Investment Management Co. raised its stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 24.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,234 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,013 shares during the quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co.’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $425,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Apella Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the 4th quarter worth about $348,000. Rockline Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the 4th quarter valued at $1,982,000. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 28.1% in the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 50,434 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,096,000 after purchasing an additional 11,065 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 1,592.1% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 414,150 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,612,000 after buying an additional 389,675 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 26.0% during the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,531,672 shares of the company’s stock worth $190,432,000 after buying an additional 522,608 shares during the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

American Electric Power Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AEP opened at $82.56 on Friday. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 12-month low of $69.38 and a 12-month high of $94.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. The firm has a market cap of $43.48 billion, a PE ratio of 19.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $82.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $79.87.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.26 by ($0.03). American Electric Power had a net margin of 11.64% and a return on equity of 11.04%. The firm had revenue of $4.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.05 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Guggenheim downgraded American Electric Power from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $81.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Monday, January 22nd. StockNews.com downgraded shares of American Electric Power from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH cut shares of American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $75.50 to $73.00 in a research report on Friday, March 8th. Cfra reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $92.00 target price (up previously from $90.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Finally, UBS Group lowered American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $86.00 to $83.00 in a research report on Monday, March 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Electric Power currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $86.08.

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.