CHICAGO TRUST Co NA Has $250,000 Stock Holdings in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

CHICAGO TRUST Co NA decreased its stake in American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 5.7% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 2,849 shares of the company’s stock after selling 172 shares during the period. CHICAGO TRUST Co NA’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $250,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AEP. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in American Electric Power during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Denali Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in American Electric Power during the 1st quarter worth approximately $26,000. Rise Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in American Electric Power during the 1st quarter worth approximately $27,000. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in American Electric Power during the 1st quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in American Electric Power during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on American Electric Power from $101.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on American Electric Power from $84.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Guggenheim upped their price target on American Electric Power from $81.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on American Electric Power from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $93.38.

American Electric Power Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:AEP traded up $0.37 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $97.53. The company had a trading volume of 3,029,748 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,301,096. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.37. The company has a market cap of $51.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.09, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.53. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a 12-month low of $69.38 and a 12-month high of $104.41. The company has a fifty day moving average of $91.44 and a two-hundred day moving average of $86.68.

American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.02. American Electric Power had a net margin of 13.52% and a return on equity of 11.31%. The business had revenue of $4.60 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.74 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.13 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that American Electric Power Company, Inc. will post 5.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

American Electric Power Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Friday, August 9th will be given a $0.88 dividend. This represents a $3.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.61%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 9th. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Greg B. Hall sold 5,880 shares of American Electric Power stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.25, for a total transaction of $518,910.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,385 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $563,476.25. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, EVP Greg B. Hall sold 5,880 shares of American Electric Power stock in a transaction on Friday, May 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.25, for a total transaction of $518,910.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,385 shares in the company, valued at $563,476.25. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Antonio P. Smyth sold 4,898 shares of American Electric Power stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total transaction of $440,820.00. Following the sale, 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 currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.