Investors Purchase High Volume of American Electric Power Call Options (NASDAQ:AEP)

American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Traders bought 6,037 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 133% compared to the average daily volume of 2,588 call options.

American Electric Power Stock Up 6.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:AEP opened at $122.11 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.55. The company has a market cap of $65.30 billion, a PE ratio of 17.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.48. American Electric Power has a 52 week low of $89.91 and a 52 week high of $122.79. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $112.65 and a 200 day simple moving average of $108.31.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The company reported $1.80 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.81 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $6.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.65 billion. American Electric Power had a net margin of 17.68% and a return on equity of 11.55%. The firm’s revenue was up 10.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.85 EPS. American Electric Power has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.850-5.95 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that American Electric Power will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current year.

American Electric Power Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.95 per share. This is a boost from American Electric Power’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.93. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 10th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.39%.

Insider Activity

In other American Electric Power news, Director Benjamin G. S. Fowke III sold 5,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.65, for a total value of $543,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 40,898 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,443,567.70. This represents a 10.89% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Kelly J. Ferneau sold 1,006 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $112.00, for a total transaction of $112,672.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 5,676 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $635,712. This trade represents a 15.06% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 11,006 shares of company stock valued at $1,243,522. 0.07% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On American Electric Power

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of AEP. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in American Electric Power in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in American Electric Power in the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Advantage Trust Co grew its stake in American Electric Power by 57.1% in the 2nd quarter. Advantage Trust Co now owns 275 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. grew its stake in American Electric Power by 166.0% in the 2nd quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 282 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd acquired a new position in American Electric Power in the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AEP has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $110.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, October 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $115.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH decreased their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $112.00 to $108.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of American Electric Power to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of American Electric Power in a research note on Monday, October 6th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $133.00 target price for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, American Electric Power has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $120.79.

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.