Benjamin Edwards Inc. Increases Stock Position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its position in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 29.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 68,405 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 15,358 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc.’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $7,026,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AEP. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its position in American Electric Power by 10,177.1% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 1,982,444 shares of the company’s stock valued at $203,399,000 after buying an additional 1,963,154 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its holdings in American Electric Power by 18.8% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,866,952 shares of the company’s stock worth $704,549,000 after purchasing an additional 1,087,163 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in American Electric Power by 51.1% in the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 1,844,968 shares of the company’s stock worth $161,877,000 after purchasing an additional 623,789 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in American Electric Power by 1,140.5% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 456,686 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,070,000 after purchasing an additional 419,870 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in American Electric Power by 8,396.3% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 351,918 shares of the company’s stock worth $361,070,000 after purchasing an additional 347,776 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased 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. 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 upped their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $104.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of American Electric Power in a research note on Friday, September 20th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $107.00 price target for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $98.20.

American Electric Power Stock Down 1.6 %

NASDAQ:AEP opened at $98.22 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $52.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.57. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $75.22 and a fifty-two week high of $105.18. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $98.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $95.82.

American Electric Power Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 8th will be paid a dividend of $0.93 per share. This is a positive change from American Electric Power’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 74.55%.

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.