Brokerages Set American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) Price Target at $135.10

American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-two analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and thirteen have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $135.9048.

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Scotiabank raised their price objective on American Electric Power from $121.00 to $131.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 16th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on American Electric Power from $140.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on American Electric Power from $133.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of American Electric Power in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised American Electric Power from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, March 1st.

Insider Buying and Selling at American Electric Power

In other American Electric Power news, EVP Phillip R. Ulrich sold 4,106 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.08, for a total value of $542,320.48. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 42,263 shares in the company, valued at $5,582,097.04. The trade was a 8.86% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Kelly J. Ferneau sold 1,351 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.46, for a total transaction 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. The trade was a 8.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.07% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of American Electric Power

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of AEP. Activest Wealth Management boosted its holdings in American Electric Power by 72.2% in the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 217 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in American Electric Power during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in American Electric Power during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of American Electric Power by 330.2% in the 3rd quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 228 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Optima Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Electric Power Trading Up 1.1%

AEP traded up $1.47 during trading on Friday, hitting $133.69. 628,435 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,460,976. American Electric Power has a 1 year low of $97.46 and a 1 year high of $134.60. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $123.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $118.42. The firm has a market cap of $72.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 the consensus estimate of $5.07 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.24 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.2% compared to the same quarter last year. American Electric Power has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.150-6.450 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that American Electric Power will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 10th were 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 was Tuesday, February 10th. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is presently 56.72%.

About American Electric Power

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.