GDS Wealth Management Has $348,000 Position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

GDS Wealth Management reduced its stake in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 7.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,289 shares of the company’s stock after selling 325 shares during the quarter. GDS Wealth Management’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $348,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brown Advisory Inc. grew its position in shares of American Electric Power by 12.3% in the 3rd quarter. Brown Advisory Inc. now owns 22,058 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,659,000 after purchasing an additional 2,415 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 41.2% during the 3rd quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 2,962 shares of the company’s stock worth $223,000 after purchasing an additional 864 shares in the last quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 121,995 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,176,000 after purchasing an additional 5,570 shares in the last quarter. Baystate Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 68,800.0% during the 3rd quarter. Baystate Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,067 shares of the company’s stock worth $156,000 after purchasing an additional 2,064 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IFM Investors Pty Ltd raised its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 168,317 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,661,000 after purchasing an additional 5,321 shares in the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Electric Power Price Performance

AEP stock traded up $0.37 during trading on Thursday, reaching $90.95. 2,465,183 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,717,186. The company has a 50-day moving average of $84.52 and a two-hundred day moving average of $81.22. The company has a market capitalization of $47.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.87, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.50. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $69.38 and a twelve month high of $92.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 0.54 and a quick ratio of 0.37.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $5 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.02 billion. American Electric Power had a net margin of 14.60% and a return on equity of 11.23%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.11 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.88 per share. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.87%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 9th. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is 65.31%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on AEP shares. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of 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. Mizuho downgraded American Electric Power from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $83.00 target price for the company. in a report on Thursday, January 11th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH downgraded shares of American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $75.50 to $73.00 in a research note on Friday, March 8th. Cfra reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $92.00 target price (up from $90.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their price target on 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, American Electric Power currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $88.14.

American Electric Power 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.