Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management Has $1.38 Million Stock Holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. $AEP

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management raised its stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 50.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,947 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 3,991 shares during the period. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $1,378,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of AEP. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in American Electric Power in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in American Electric Power during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC increased its position in American Electric Power by 330.2% in the 3rd quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 228 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the period. Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC acquired a new position in American Electric Power in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Osterweis Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 3,000.0% during the second quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 310 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on AEP. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of American Electric Power from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $142.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, February 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on American Electric Power from $133.00 to $141.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on American Electric Power from $140.00 to $141.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Evercore lifted their target price on American Electric Power from $137.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on American Electric Power from $123.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $136.10.

Insider Activity at American Electric Power

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

American Electric Power Stock Performance

AEP opened at $132.68 on Friday. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $97.46 and a twelve month high of $135.00. The company has a fifty day moving average of $128.10 and a 200-day moving average of $120.70. The stock has a market cap of $72.12 billion, a PE ratio of 19.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The company reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.04. American Electric Power had a net margin of 16.37% and a return on equity of 10.46%. The business had revenue of $5.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.07 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.24 earnings per share. American Electric Power’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.2% on a year-over-year basis. American Electric Power has set its FY 2026 guidance at 6.150-6.450 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.87 EPS for the current year.

American Electric Power Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 10th were paid a dividend of $0.95 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 10th. This represents a $3.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 56.72%.

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.