Northcape Wealth Management LLC Sells 1,052 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Northcape Wealth Management LLC decreased its position in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 14.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,307 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,052 shares during the quarter. Northcape Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $512,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. BLB&B Advisors LLC boosted its stake in American Electric Power by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. BLB&B Advisors LLC now owns 3,405 shares of the company’s stock worth $277,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC boosted its stake in American Electric Power by 4.4% during the third quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 3,150 shares of the company’s stock worth $237,000 after buying an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co boosted its stake in American Electric Power by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 14,598 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,186,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in American Electric Power by 3.1% during the third quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,715 shares of the company’s stock worth $355,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nicolet Advisory Services LLC raised its position in American Electric Power by 5.0% in the third quarter. Nicolet Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,996 shares of the company’s stock valued at $220,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on AEP shares. UBS Group downgraded American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $86.00 to $83.00 in a research report on Monday, March 11th. Mizuho downgraded American Electric Power from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $83.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Cfra reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $92.00 price objective (up previously from $90.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a report on Tuesday, February 27th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH downgraded American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $75.50 to $73.00 in a report on Friday, March 8th. Finally, Guggenheim downgraded American Electric Power from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $81.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Electric Power currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $86.08.

American Electric Power Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:AEP traded down $0.64 on Tuesday, hitting $86.03. 5,738,277 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,771,013. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $83.63 and its 200 day moving average is $80.59. The company has a market capitalization of $45.30 billion, a PE ratio of 20.39, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.51. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 1-year low of $69.38 and a 1-year high of $93.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.53.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last released its quarterly earnings data 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). The business had revenue of $5 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.02 billion. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 11.04% and a net margin of 11.64%. The company’s revenue was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.11 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.54 EPS for the current year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed 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 of this dividend is Thursday, May 9th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.09%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is currently 82.82%.

American Electric Power 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.