Ground Swell Capital LLC Makes New $467,000 Investment in American Electric Power Company, Inc. $AEP

Ground Swell Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 3,934 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $467,000. American Electric Power comprises approximately 1.1% of Ground Swell Capital LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in American Electric Power by 118.0% in the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares during the last quarter. Parvin Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in American Electric Power in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Caitlin John LLC acquired a new stake in American Electric Power in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Premier Financial Group bought a new stake in American Electric Power during the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Highland Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in American Electric Power during the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on AEP shares. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $139.00 to $135.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 19th. Scotiabank lowered their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $140.00 to $131.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 30th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $128.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $140.00 to $135.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, October 19th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of American Electric Power from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, October 24th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, American Electric Power has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $139.83.

American Electric Power Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of American Electric Power stock traded up $0.27 during trading on Friday, reaching $129.18. 2,707,451 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,960,362. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $124.52 and a 200-day moving average price of $128.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.87, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $112.54 and a twelve month high of $140.58.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 28th. The company reported $2.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.04 by $0.19. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 10.52% and a net margin of 14.21%. The firm had revenue of $6.83 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.55 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.80 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 6.44 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 10th will be paid a $0.97 dividend. This is a boost from American Electric Power’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.95. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 10th. This represents a $3.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Electric Power

In related news, CAO Kate Dixon sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.00, for a total value of $250,000.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 15,856 shares in the company, valued at $1,982,000. This trade represents a 11.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.05% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

American Electric Power Company Profile

American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) is an electric utility holding company based in Columbus, Ohio. Through its regulated utility subsidiaries, it generates or purchases electricity and delivers power to residential, commercial and industrial customers. AEP’s operations include electric generation, transmission and distribution, with service territories across 11 states: Arkansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia.