Morgan Stanley Lowers American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) Price Target to $94.00

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) had its target price reduced by Morgan Stanley from $98.00 to $94.00 in a note issued to investors on Monday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 8.18% from the stock’s current price.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Barclays boosted their price target on American Electric Power from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $95.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 14th. Cfra reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $92.00 price target (up from $90.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $86.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on American Electric Power from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $88.62.

American Electric Power Stock Down 1.4 %

AEP opened at $86.89 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $45.80 billion, a PE ratio of 16.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.54. American Electric Power has a 1 year low of $69.38 and a 1 year high of $93.44. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $88.34 and a 200 day moving average price of $83.98.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.02. American Electric Power had a net margin of 14.60% and a return on equity of 11.23%. The business had revenue of $5 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.02 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.11 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that American Electric Power will post 5.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Antonio P. Smyth sold 4,898 shares of American Electric Power stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total value of $440,820.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,446 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $580,140. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Antonio P. Smyth sold 4,898 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total transaction of $440,820.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,446 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $580,140. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Greg B. Hall sold 5,880 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.25, for a total transaction of $518,910.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,385 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $563,476.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Electric Power

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in American Electric Power in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Denali Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $27,000. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in American Electric Power during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in American Electric Power in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Electric Power Company Profile

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.