World Investment Advisors LLC Buys 3,108 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

World Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 127.8% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 5,539 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,108 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $568,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of AEP. Tudor Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,331,000. Chelsea Counsel Co. raised its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 46.1% in the third quarter. Chelsea Counsel Co. now owns 1,110 shares of the company’s stock valued at $114,000 after purchasing an additional 350 shares during the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the third quarter valued at approximately $3,191,000. Passumpsic Savings Bank acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the third quarter valued at approximately $914,000. Finally, Fortem Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 11.3% in the third quarter. Fortem Financial Group LLC now owns 2,651 shares of the company’s stock valued at $272,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on AEP shares. Scotiabank downgraded shares of American Electric Power from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $105.00 to $102.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $91.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $104.00 to $102.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $109.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $97.00 to $96.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $97.13.

American Electric Power Price Performance

NASDAQ:AEP opened at $91.92 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $97.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $96.21. The company has a market cap of $48.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.55. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a one year low of $75.22 and a one year high of $105.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.41.

American Electric Power Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 8th were given a $0.93 dividend. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 8th. This is a boost from American Electric Power’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. American Electric Power’s payout ratio is presently 74.55%.

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.