March 9, 2021 - An amended complaint was filed.

August 20, 2020 - An investor in shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NYSE: AEP) filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio over alleged violations of Federal Securities Laws by American Electric Power Company, Inc in connection with certain allegedly false and misleading statements made between November 2, 2016 and July 24, 2020.

Columbus, OH based 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.

On July 26, 2020, the Columbus Dispatch reported allegations that a “dark-money” group funded by American Electric Power Company, Inc. contributed to the campaign of Ohio House speaker, Larry Householder, who is allegedly involved in an Ohio nuclear bribery and racketeering case. Shares of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NYSE: AEP) closed on August 3, 2020 at $85.77 per share.

According to the complaint the plaintiff alleges on behalf of purchasers of American Electric Power Company, Inc. (NYSE: AEP) common shares between November 2, 2016 and July 24, 2020, that the defendants violated Federal Securities Laws.

More specifically, the plaintiff claims that between November 2, 2016 and July 24, 2020, the defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that the Company covertly participated in the the largest public corruption case in Ohio history , that the Company secretly funneled substantial funds to Ohio political organizations and politicians to bribe politicians to pass Ohio House Bill 6, which benefitted the Company and its coal-fired generation assets, that the Company partially funded a massive, misleading advertising campaign in support of HB6 and in opposition to a ballot initiative to repeal HB6 by passing substantial sums through a web of dark money entities and front companies in order to conceal the Company’s involvement, that the Company aided in subverting a citizens’ ballot initiative to repeal HB6, that as a result of the foregoing, defendants’ Class Period statements regarding the Company’s regulatory and legislative efforts were materially false and misleading, that as a result of the foregoing, the Company would face increased scrutiny, that the Company was subject to undisclosed risk of reputational, legal and financial harm, that the bribery scheme would jeopardize the benefits the Company sought by HB6, that as opposed to the Company’s repeated public statements regarding a move to clean energy, it sought a dirty energy bailout, that as opposed to the Company’s repeated public statements regarding protection of its customers’ interests, the Company sought an extra and state-mandated surcharge on its customers’ bills, and that as a result of the foregoing, defendants’ statements about its business, operations, and prospects, were materially false and misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis at all relevant times. When the true details entered the market, the lawsuit claims that investors suffered damages.