American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) Stock Price Expected to Rise, BMO Capital Markets Analyst Says

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) had its price objective raised by equities research analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $111.00 to $115.00 in a note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the stock. BMO Capital Markets’ price target would suggest a potential upside of 8.06% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Guggenheim raised American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Bank of America raised their target price on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $101.08.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AEP traded down $1.29 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $106.43. 262,053 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,154,933. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.43. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $104.88 and a two-hundred day moving average of $99.46. The company has a current ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.46. American Electric Power has a 12 month low of $83.68 and a 12 month high of $110.48.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates 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 last year, the company earned $1.23 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that American Electric Power will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $220,983,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its position in American Electric Power by 51.0% in the 4th quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 6,416,474 shares of the company’s stock valued at $591,791,000 after buying an additional 2,165,888 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 13,499.5% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,150,215 shares of the company’s stock valued at $234,954,000 after buying an additional 2,134,404 shares during the period. Cohen & Steers Inc. bought a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the fourth quarter worth $121,605,000. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 27.5% during the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 5,120,568 shares of the company’s stock valued at $472,270,000 after acquiring an additional 1,105,317 shares during the period. 75.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.