Payden & Rygel Investment Group Makes New Investment in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Payden & Rygel Investment Group bought a new position in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 2,500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $215,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Denali Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the first quarter worth about $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC bought a new position in American Electric Power in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in American Electric Power in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in American Electric Power in the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in American Electric Power in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. 75.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of American Electric Power from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $84.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of American Electric Power from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $73.00 to $86.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 6th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $98.00 to $94.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, June 24th. Finally, Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $88.77.

Insider Transactions at American Electric Power

In other news, EVP Antonio P. Smyth sold 4,898 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total value of $440,820.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,446 shares in the company, valued at $580,140. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Antonio P. Smyth sold 4,898 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total value of $440,820.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,446 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $580,140. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Greg B. Hall sold 5,880 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.25, for a total value of $518,910.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,385 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $563,476.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

AEP stock traded up $0.82 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $95.84. 3,340,156 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,264,612. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $69.38 and a twelve month high of $97.32. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $89.58 and a 200-day simple moving average of $85.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.53.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 the consensus estimate of $5.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.11 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.58 earnings per share for the current year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 9th will be paid a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 9th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.67%. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is 65.31%.

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.