Centaurus Financial Inc. Buys 445 Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP)

Centaurus Financial Inc. lifted its stake in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) by 16.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,110 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 445 shares during the period. Centaurus Financial Inc.’s holdings in American Electric Power were worth $319,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of American Electric Power by 57.2% in the 2nd quarter. HHM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 283 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC increased its stake in American Electric Power by 935.9% in the 2nd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 404 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 365 shares during the last quarter. Briaud Financial Planning Inc lifted its position in shares of American Electric Power by 52.1% during the 2nd quarter. Briaud Financial Planning Inc now owns 438 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Naples Money Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of American Electric Power in the second quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Institutional investors own 75.24% of the company’s stock.

American Electric Power Stock Up 1.3 %

AEP stock opened at $99.33 on Wednesday. American Electric Power Company, Inc. has a twelve month low of $75.22 and a twelve month high of $105.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.86 billion, a PE ratio of 19.91, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.47. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $98.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $95.64.

American Electric Power Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Friday, November 8th will be issued a dividend of $0.93 per share. This represents a $3.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 8th. This is a positive change from American Electric Power’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.88. American Electric Power’s dividend payout ratio is 74.55%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AEP has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on American Electric Power from $97.00 to $96.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of American Electric Power from $97.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of American Electric Power from $100.00 to $99.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of American Electric Power from $99.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $97.93.

American Electric Power 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.