Tear Sheet: American Electric Power Co. Inc.'s SEC Settlement Is Credit Neutral

On Jan. 15, 2025, American Electric Power Co. Inc. (AEP) reached an agreement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to pay a civil penalty of $19 million related to AEP?s violations of the federal securities laws in connection with its relationship with, and statements made about, Empowering Ohio?s Economy Inc. The settlement entirely resolves the SEC?s investigation that began in 2021. AEP has since implemented additional safeguards within its internal accounting and disclosure controls. AEP recorded an accrual for the full amount of the penalty in the third quarter of 2024. In July 2020, former Speaker of the Ohio House of Representative, Larry Householder, was charged with federal racketeering and conspiracy related to a yearslong bribery scheme. AEP then

...Rating Component Scores Foreign currency issuer credit rating ###+/Negative/A-2 Local currency issuer credit rating ###+/Negative/A-2 Business risk Excellent Country risk Very Low Industry risk Very Low Competitive position Strong Financial risk Significant Cash flow/leverage Significant Anchor a- Diversification/portfolio effect Neutral (no impact) Capital structure Neutral (no impact) Financial policy Neutral (no impact) Liquidity Adequate (no impact) Management and governance Neutral (no impact) Comparable rating analysis Negative (-1 notch) Stand-alone credit profile ###+...

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