Naviter Wealth LLC Sells 2,224 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Naviter Wealth LLC cut its position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 20.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 8,430 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,224 shares during the quarter. Naviter Wealth LLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $685,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of American Electric Power by 222.0% in the 3rd quarter. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 351 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 242 shares during the period. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 304.8% during the 4th quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 425 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, JNBA Financial Advisors raised its position in shares of American Electric Power by 91.6% in the third quarter. JNBA Financial Advisors now owns 479 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares during the period. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AEP opened at $86.91 on Tuesday. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 1 year low of $69.38 and a 1 year high of $93.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 0.53 and a quick ratio of 0.36. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $83.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $80.59.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.36 by ($0.09). American Electric Power had a net margin of 11.64% and a return on equity of 11.04%. The business had revenue of $5 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.02 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.11 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.05%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.82%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently commented on AEP. UBS Group downgraded shares of American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $86.00 to $83.00 in a report on Monday, March 11th. StockNews.com downgraded American Electric Power from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Guggenheim cut American Electric Power from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $81.00 price target for the company. in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Cfra restated 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. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on American Electric Power from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Electric Power presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $86.08.

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.