Jefferies Financial Group Begins Coverage on American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP)

Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) in a report published on Friday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage issued a hold rating and a $107.00 target price on the stock.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on AEP. Guggenheim boosted their price target on American Electric Power from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $101.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $91.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Monday, September 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Hold and an average target price of $96.00.

American Electric Power Trading Up 0.4 %

NASDAQ AEP opened at $102.53 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $98.82 and a 200-day moving average of $91.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.48. American Electric Power has a 12 month low of $69.38 and a 12 month high of $105.18. The company has a market cap of $54.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.54.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $4.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.74 billion. American Electric Power had a net margin of 13.52% and a return on equity of 11.31%. American Electric Power’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.13 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that American Electric Power will post 5.59 earnings per share for the current year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 9th were paid a dividend of $0.88 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 9th. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.43%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.31%.

Institutional Trading of American Electric Power

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of American Electric Power by 57.2% during the 2nd quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 283 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of American Electric Power during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, YHB Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in American Electric Power during the first quarter worth about $29,000. 75.24% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.