American Electric Power reports earnings miss, names interim CEO

(Reuters) - Utility firm American Electric Power on Monday reported fourth-quarter earnings that missed analysts' expectations and named board member Benjamin Fowke as interim chief executive officer, effective immediately.

Fowke, the former CEO of peer Xcel Energy, will replace Julie Sloat, who had been American Electric's chief since January 2023.

The change comes after the company announced a deal with billionaire investor Carl Icahn in February to give his representatives two board seats.

"This decision was not a result of any disagreement with Sloat regarding AEP's operations, policies or financial performance, and was not made for cause or related to any ethical or compliance concern," the company said.

American Electric said its board has engaged a leading executive search firm to conduct an external search for a permanent CEO.

The Columbus, Ohio-based company reported operating earnings of $1.23 per share for the fourth quarter, missing analysts' expectations of $1.26 per share, according to LSEG data.

American Electric left its 2024 operating earnings guidance unchanged at $5.53 to $5.73 per share with an expected long-term growth rate of 6% to 7%.

Shares of the company closed 2% lower at $80.77 on Monday. They are down 11% over the past 12 months.

(Reporting by Nicole Jao in New York and Sourasis Bose in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel and Matthew Lewis)