American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NASDAQ:AEP) shares are trading higher after the Ohio-based utility reported upbeat first-quarter results.

Adjusted earnings were $1.64 per share, up from $1.54 a year earlier and above the Street estimate of $1.57. Revenue totaled $6.02 billion, topping analyst expectations of $5.68 billion.

Segment Performance

The company reported higher operating earnings in its Vertically Integrated Utilities segment, which rose to $464 million from $350 million a year ago, and in Transmission & Distribution Utilities, which increased to $237 million from $192 million.

Transmission Holdco posted operating earnings of $209 million, down from $235 million in the prior-year quarter. Meanwhile, the Generation and Marketing segment reported operating earnings of $90 million, up from $76 million a year earlier.

Key Metrics & Outlook

The company signed 7 GW of new load agreements in the quarter, mainly in Ohio and Texas. This brings expected incremental load growth to 63 GW by 2030, supported by industrial customers, hyperscalers, and data center developers.

Demand remains strong across Indiana, Ohio, Oklahoma, and Texas. Consequently, AEP raised its five-year capital plan to $78 billion from $72 billion. It is driven by transmission investments in PJM and SPP and new gas-fired generation in Indiana expected later in the decade. The plan supports ~11% annual rate base growth and over 9% earnings CAGR through 2030.

Beyond this plan, the company sees more than $10 billion in additional opportunities. This includes the Piketon transmission project in Ohio, fuel cell deployment in Wyoming, and further generation projects across its footprint.

As demand growth accelerates, American Electric Power remains focused on keeping residential power affordable, with an estimated $16 billion in customer cost offsets expected over the life of its large load contracts.

American Electric Power reiterated its 2026 operating earnings guidance of $6.15 to $6.45 per share, compared with a consensus estimate of $6.34.

AEP Price Action: American Electric Power shares were up 3.30% at $139.10 at the time of publication on Tuesday. The stock is trading at a new 52-week high, according to Benzinga Pro data.

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