American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) Position Increased by Avestar Capital LLC

Avestar Capital LLC lifted its holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 2.6% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 4,678 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the period. Avestar Capital LLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $480,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its holdings in American Electric Power by 5.5% in the third quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 3,296 shares of the company’s stock worth $338,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. lifted its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 39,132 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,015,000 after purchasing an additional 1,990 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its position in American Electric Power by 18.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,866,952 shares of the company’s stock valued at $704,549,000 after purchasing an additional 1,087,163 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can grew its stake in American Electric Power by 8.9% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,954,844 shares of the company’s stock worth $199,081,000 after buying an additional 159,278 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. grew its position in shares of American Electric Power by 8.3% during the third quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 12,603 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,293,000 after acquiring an additional 962 shares during the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

AEP opened at $99.33 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $98.87 and a 200-day simple moving average of $95.64. The firm has a market cap of $52.86 billion, a PE ratio of 19.91, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $75.22 and a fifty-two week high of $105.18.

American Electric Power Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be issued a $0.93 dividend. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.75%. This is a boost from American Electric Power’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 74.55%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on AEP. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $109.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on American Electric Power from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Barclays cut their target price on American Electric Power from $100.00 to $99.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $97.93.

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.