By otakuyassine3@gmail.com 
American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP – Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 10,080,000 shares, an increase of 16.7% from the December 31st total of 8,640,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,800,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.6 days.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AEP. Global Retirement Partners LLC raised its position in American Electric Power by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 6,198 shares of the company’s stock valued at $572,000 after buying an additional 444 shares during the last quarter. Plan Group Financial LLC boosted its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 13.0% in the 4th quarter. Plan Group Financial LLC now owns 11,027 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,017,000 after buying an additional 1,265 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new stake in shares of American Electric Power in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $356,000. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund boosted its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 9.5% in the 4th quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund now owns 17,256 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,592,000 after buying an additional 1,501 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Key Financial Inc boosted its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 16.1% in the 4th quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 1,723 shares of the company’s stock valued at $159,000 after buying an additional 239 shares during the last quarter. 75.24% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
American Electric Power Trading Up 0.3 %
Shares of NASDAQ:AEP traded up $0.33 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $98.36. The company had a trading volume of 4,912,725 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,111,004. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $95.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $97.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47. The stock has a market cap of $52.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.71, a PEG ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.56. American Electric Power has a 12 month low of $75.22 and a 12 month high of $105.18.
American Electric Power Announces Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.93 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 10th. This represents a $3.72 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.78%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is presently 74.55%.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on American Electric Power from $108.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Bank of America upgraded American Electric Power from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $98.00 to $104.00 in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on American Electric Power from $97.00 to $96.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Guggenheim upgraded American Electric Power from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on American Electric Power from $109.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $98.00.
Get Our Latest Research Report on AEP
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.
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