Financial Advocates Investment Management Has $688,000 Stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Financial Advocates Investment Management lessened its position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 3.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,702 shares of the company’s stock after selling 227 shares during the period. Financial Advocates Investment Management’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $688,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,731,000. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in American Electric Power by 381.9% during the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,995,884 shares of the company’s stock worth $171,127,000 after acquiring an additional 1,581,734 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC increased its position in American Electric Power by 646.9% in the 1st quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC now owns 261,440 shares of the company’s stock valued at $22,510,000 after acquiring an additional 226,435 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 21.7% during the first quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 582,692 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,170,000 after acquiring an additional 103,771 shares during the last quarter. Finally, O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 60.3% during the first quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 49,762 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,285,000 after purchasing an additional 18,726 shares during the period. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American Electric Power Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AEP opened at $97.25 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $100.68 and its 200-day moving average is $94.35. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $74.97 and a twelve month high of $105.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.37, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.54.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.23 by $0.02. American Electric Power had a net margin of 13.52% and a return on equity of 11.31%. The firm had revenue of $4.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.74 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.13 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.6 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.93 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 8th. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.83%. This is an increase from American Electric Power’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is 70.12%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on American Electric Power from $98.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on American Electric Power from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of American Electric Power in a research report on Friday, September 20th. They set a “hold” rating and a $107.00 target price for the company. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $99.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, American Electric Power currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $98.43.

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.