American Electric Power Company, Inc. (AEP), headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, generates, transmits, and distributes electricity for sale to retail and wholesale customers. With a market cap of $69.4 billion, the company operates approximately 225,000 circuit miles of distribution lines that delivers electricity to 5.6 million customers. The domestic electric utility company is expected to announce its fiscal third-quarter earnings for 2026 before the market opens on Wednesday, Oct. 28.
Ahead of the event, analysts expect American Electric Power to report a profit of $2.04 per share on a diluted basis, up 13.3% from $1.80 per share in the year-ago quarter. The company beat the consensus estimates in two of the last four quarters while missing the forecast on two other occasions.
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For the full year, analysts expect American Electric Power to report EPS of $6.39, up 7% from $5.97 in fiscal 2025. Its EPS is expected to rise 7.5% year over year to $6.87 in fiscal 2027.
www.barchart.comAEP stock has underperformed the S&P 500 Index’s ($SPX) 15.2% gains over the past 52 weeks, with shares up 10.7% during this period. However, it outperformed the State Street Utilities Select Sector SPDR ETF’s (XLU) 6% losses over the same time frame.
www.barchart.comAEP has delivered mixed performance over the past year due to a tension between strong long-term growth drivers and near-term market friction. On the positive side, AEP has benefited from structural demand tailwinds driven by the massive expansion of AI data centers and industrial electrification, which significantly expanded its growth pipeline and led management to raise 2026 earnings guidance, alongside defensive sector rotations into high-yield utility stocks. However, this growth momentum has been offset by quarter-to-quarter financial volatility, including missing Q2 EPS estimates due to tax timing issues and tough comparisons against previous asset sales, as well as valuation pressure as rising interest rate expectations and rich multiples prompted profit-taking among investors.
On Jul. 30, AEP shares closed down more than 1% after reporting its Q2 results. Its adjusted EPS of $1.36 missed Wall Street expectations of $1.49. The company’s revenue was $5.4 billion, topping Wall Street forecasts of $5.3 billion. AEP expects full-year adjusted EPS in the range of $6.25 to $6.55.
Analysts’ consensus opinion on AEP stock is reasonably bullish, with a “Moderate Buy” rating overall. Out of 23 analysts covering the stock, 13 advise a “Strong Buy” rating, one suggests a “Moderate Buy,” and nine give a “Hold.” AEP’s average analyst price target is $138.63, indicating a potential upside of 6.8% from the current levels.
On the date of publication, Neha Panjwani did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
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