Lifeworks Advisors LLC Makes New $293,000 Investment in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Lifeworks Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 3,182 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $293,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in American Electric Power during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of American Electric Power during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Decker Retirement Planning Inc. bought a new stake in American Electric Power in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on AEP shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a “neutral” rating and set a $102.00 price target (down previously from $109.00) on shares of American Electric Power in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Bank of America upgraded shares of American Electric Power from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $98.00 to $104.00 in a report on Monday, January 13th. Scotiabank downgraded American Electric Power from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $105.00 to $102.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Guggenheim upgraded American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, American Electric Power has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $98.46.

American Electric Power Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AEP opened at $104.62 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $99.21 and its 200-day moving average is $98.64. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $79.16 and a twelve month high of $109.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.68, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.50.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.24. American Electric Power had a net margin of 15.08% and a return on equity of 11.27%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.23 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.93 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.56%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 66.43%.

About American Electric Power

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.