American Electric Power Company, Inc. (AEP) in Focus as Morgan Stanley Reassesses Regulated Utilities

Group 1 - American Electric Power Company, Inc. (AEP) is recognized in the Dividend Contenders List as one of the top 20 stocks [1] - Morgan Stanley has raised its price target for AEP to $125 from $120, maintaining an Overweight rating, while noting that utilities lagged behind the S&P's return in December [2] - AEP's unit is set to purchase a significant portion of its option for solid oxide fuel cells in a deal valued at approximately $2.65 billion, aligning with its plan to develop a fuel cell power generation facility [3][4] Group 2 - AEP has secured a long-term offtake agreement for 20 years with an unnamed customer, which will take the full output of the planned fuel cell facility near Cheyenne, Wyoming, contingent on certain conditions expected to be met by Q2 2026 [5] - AEP operates as an electric utility holding company, providing services to over five million retail customers across multiple states including Arkansas, Indiana, Kentucky, and others [6]