American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) PT Raised to $83.00 at Guggenheim

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) had its price target lifted by equities research analysts at Guggenheim from $81.00 to $83.00 in a report issued on Monday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the stock. Guggenheim’s price objective points to a potential downside of 12.30% from the company’s current price.

Several other research analysts have also commented on AEP. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on American Electric Power from $98.00 to $94.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 24th. StockNews.com raised American Electric Power from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on American Electric Power from $95.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 14th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised American Electric Power from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $73.00 to $86.00 in a report on Thursday, June 6th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on American Electric Power from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $88.77.

American Electric Power Price Performance

Shares of AEP traded up $1.50 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $94.64. 1,143,127 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,259,362. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $89.34 and a 200-day moving average of $85.03. American Electric Power has a one year low of $69.38 and a one year high of $94.72. The firm has a market cap of $49.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.56, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a current ratio of 0.54 and a quick ratio of 0.37.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $5 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.02 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.11 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 6.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that American Electric Power will post 5.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other American Electric Power news, EVP Antonio P. Smyth sold 4,898 shares of the 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 owns 6,446 shares in the company, valued at $580,140. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, 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 transaction of $518,910.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,385 shares in the company, valued at $563,476.25. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,446 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $580,140. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.12% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Electric Power

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Richardson Financial Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 3.9% in the first quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 3,084 shares of the company’s stock worth $266,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the period. Bogart Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in American Electric Power by 7.8% during the 1st quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 1,650 shares of the company’s stock valued at $142,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the period. Welch Group LLC boosted its holdings in American Electric Power by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Welch Group LLC now owns 6,843 shares of the company’s stock valued at $600,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the period. Seelaus Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. Seelaus Asset Management LLC now owns 6,775 shares of the company’s stock worth $583,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Finally, Personal CFO Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Personal CFO Solutions LLC now owns 5,345 shares of the company’s stock worth $434,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the period. 75.24% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.