Sapient Capital LLC Buys Shares of 2,719 American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Sapient Capital LLC bought a new position in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund bought 2,719 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $221,000.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in American Electric Power during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of American Electric Power by 304.8% in the 4th quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 425 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 320 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in American Electric Power in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. JNBA Financial Advisors grew its position in American Electric Power by 91.6% during the 3rd quarter. JNBA Financial Advisors now owns 479 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Byrne Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the third quarter valued at $38,000. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

American Electric Power Price Performance

American Electric Power stock opened at $89.87 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 0.54 and a quick ratio of 0.37. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $84.26 and a 200 day simple moving average of $81.04. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a one year low of $69.38 and a one year high of $92.88. The company has a market capitalization of $47.37 billion, a PE ratio of 16.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.50.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.02. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.23% and a net margin of 14.60%. The company had revenue of $5 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.02 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.11 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 10th will be given a dividend of $0.88 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.92%. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is 65.31%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Cfra reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $92.00 price objective (up from $90.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a research note on Tuesday, February 27th. Guggenheim lowered shares of American Electric Power from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $81.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $86.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. StockNews.com upgraded American Electric Power from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on American Electric Power from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $88.14.

American Electric Power Company Profile

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.