Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) Shares Bought by Allworth Financial LP

Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in shares of Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) by 23.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,456 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 277 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP’s holdings in Ameren were worth $105,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its position in Ameren by 245.5% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 56,575 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,093,000 after purchasing an additional 40,202 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ameren during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,168,000. Raymond James & Associates boosted its stake in shares of Ameren by 34.7% during the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 142,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $10,272,000 after acquiring an additional 36,611 shares in the last quarter. Schrum Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ameren during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $473,000. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of Ameren by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 1,637,693 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $122,549,000 after acquiring an additional 17,468 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.09% of the company’s stock.

Ameren Price Performance

AEE stock opened at $71.74 on Friday. Ameren Co. has a 1 year low of $67.03 and a 1 year high of $91.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.65. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $71.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $73.60. The firm has a market cap of $19.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.42, a PEG ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.44.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 23rd. The utilities provider reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.61 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $1.62 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.03 billion. Ameren had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 10.42%. The company’s revenue was down 20.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.63 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Ameren Co. will post 4.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ameren Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 13th were issued a $0.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 12th. This is an increase from Ameren’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.63. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.74%. Ameren’s payout ratio is 61.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on AEE shares. StockNews.com lowered Ameren from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Ameren from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Mizuho decreased their price target on Ameren from $77.00 to $72.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, December 18th. Barclays boosted their price target on Ameren from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on Ameren from $77.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $79.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ameren

In other Ameren news, CEO Martin J. Lyons sold 7,270 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.70, for a total value of $513,989.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 246,434 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,422,883.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Martin J. Lyons sold 7,270 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.70, for a total transaction of $513,989.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 246,434 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,422,883.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Mark C. Lindgren sold 1,630 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.70, for a total value of $115,241.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 47,883 shares in the company, valued at $3,385,328.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Ameren

Ameren Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a public utility holding company in the United States. The company operates through four segments: Ameren Missouri, Ameren Illinois Electric Distribution, Ameren Illinois Natural Gas, and Ameren Transmission. It engages in the rate-regulated electric generation, transmission, and distribution activities; and rate-regulated natural gas distribution business.