American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Morgan Stanley Analyst Says

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) had its price target lifted by Morgan Stanley from $133.00 to $137.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,MarketScreener reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley’s target price indicates a potential upside of 9.02% from the stock’s current price.

AEP has been the subject of several other reports. Argus upped their target price on American Electric Power from $128.00 to $140.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Mizuho boosted their price objective on American Electric Power from $123.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Wall Street Zen upgraded American Electric Power from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, March 1st. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $132.00 to $135.00 in a report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $125.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $136.10.

American Electric Power Trading Down 2.4%

Shares of AEP opened at $125.66 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.61. American Electric Power has a twelve month low of $97.46 and a twelve month high of $135.00. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $125.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $119.28. The company has a current ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $5.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.07 billion. American Electric Power had a return on equity of 10.46% and a net margin of 16.37%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.24 EPS. American Electric Power has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.150-6.450 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that American Electric Power will post 5.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other American Electric Power news, EVP Kelly J. Ferneau sold 1,351 shares of American Electric Power stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.46, for a total transaction of $177,602.46. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 15,410 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,025,798.60. The trade was a 8.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Phillip R. Ulrich sold 4,106 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.08, for a total value of $542,320.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 42,263 shares in the company, valued at $5,582,097.04. This represents a 8.86% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.07% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On American Electric Power

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of American Electric Power by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 52,496,895 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,053,417,000 after acquiring an additional 828,588 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in American Electric Power by 5.2% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 30,437,776 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,509,780,000 after purchasing an additional 1,514,865 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in American Electric Power by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 14,661,858 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,690,659,000 after purchasing an additional 271,879 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in American Electric Power by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,823,744 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,587,841,000 after purchasing an additional 83,285 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its position in American Electric Power by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 10,626,841 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,225,381,000 after purchasing an additional 57,807 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

About American Electric Power

American Electric Power (NASDAQ: AEP) is a major investor-owned electric utility headquartered in Columbus, Ohio. The company is primarily engaged in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity, operating a diverse portfolio of power plants and an extensive high-voltage transmission network. AEP serves retail customers through its regulated utility subsidiaries and provides wholesale power and grid services across multiple regional markets in the United States.

Operations span the full utility value chain: AEP owns and operates generation assets that include fossil-fuel, natural gas, nuclear and hydropower facilities, and it has been adding renewable resources to its mix.