American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) Rating Increased to Buy at LADENBURG THALM/SH SH

LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday morning, Marketbeat reports. The firm currently has $148.00 target price on the stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Williams Trading set a $137.00 price objective on shares of American Electric Power in a research report on Thursday, December 18th. UBS Group upgraded American Electric Power from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the company from $115.00 to $132.00 in a report on Friday, February 27th. Bank of America cut shares of American Electric Power from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the company from $131.00 to $122.00 in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $121.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $133.00 price objective on shares of American Electric Power in a report on Friday, February 20th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $134.33.

American Electric Power Stock Up 1.2%

AEP stock opened at $133.52 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $121.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $117.65. The company has a market cap of $72.22 billion, a PE ratio of 19.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. American Electric Power has a 52 week low of $97.46 and a 52 week high of $134.60.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.04. American Electric Power had a net margin of 16.37% and a return on equity of 10.46%. The business had revenue of $5.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.24 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.2% on a year-over-year basis. American Electric Power has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.150-6.450 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that American Electric Power will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 10th will be given a dividend of $0.95 per share. This represents a $3.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 10th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.72%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Electric Power news, EVP Phillip R. Ulrich sold 4,106 shares of American Electric Power stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.08, for a total transaction of $542,320.48. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 42,263 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,582,097.04. This trade represents a 8.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kelly J. Ferneau sold 1,351 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.46, for a total value of $177,602.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 15,410 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,025,798.60. This represents a 8.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 10,457 shares of company stock valued at $1,295,273. Corporate insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Electric Power

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. West Family Investments Inc. purchased a new position in American Electric Power in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $256,000. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI increased its stake in American Electric Power by 462.1% in the 3rd quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 52,953 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,958,000 after acquiring an additional 43,533 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its stake in American Electric Power by 228.6% in the third quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 51,659 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,812,000 after purchasing an additional 35,938 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 5.9% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,802,211 shares of the company’s stock worth $809,557,000 after acquiring an additional 432,441 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its stake in American Electric Power by 807.5% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 263,751 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,672,000 after purchasing an additional 234,689 shares during the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

American Electric Power Company Profile

American Electric Power (NASDAQ: AEP) is a major investor-owned electric utility headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. The company is primarily engaged in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity, operating a diverse portfolio of power plants and an extensive high-voltage transmission network. AEP serves retail customers through its regulated utility subsidiaries and provides wholesale power and grid services across multiple regional markets in the United States.

Operations span the full utility value chain: AEP owns and operates generation assets that include fossil-fuel, natural gas, nuclear and hydropower facilities, and it has been adding renewable resources to its mix.