Barclays Cuts Ameren (NYSE:AEE) Price Target to $73.00

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) had its price objective decreased by Barclays from $74.00 to $73.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. Barclays currently has an equal weight rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

AEE has been the topic of a number of other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut Ameren from an overweight rating to a neutral rating in a research report on Monday, December 18th. StockNews.com cut Ameren from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report 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 report on Monday, February 26th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Ameren from $77.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Ameren in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued a sell rating and a $73.00 price target on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $79.40.

Ameren Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:AEE opened at $71.58 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.38, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.44. 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 simple moving average is $71.55 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $73.54. Ameren has a 52-week low of $67.03 and a 52-week high of $91.18.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 23rd. The utilities provider reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by ($0.01). Ameren had a net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 10.42%. The company had revenue of $1.62 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.03 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.63 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 20.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Ameren will post 4.59 EPS for the current year.

Ameren Increases Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Martin J. Lyons sold 7,270 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 246,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,422,883.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Mark C. Lindgren sold 1,630 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.70, for a total transaction of $115,241.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 47,883 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,385,328.10. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Martin J. Lyons sold 7,270 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.70, for a total value of $513,989.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 246,434 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,422,883.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ameren

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Ameren by 245.5% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 56,575 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,093,000 after acquiring an additional 40,202 shares during the period. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new position in Ameren during the 4th quarter valued at $1,168,000. Raymond James & Associates boosted its holdings in Ameren by 34.7% during the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 142,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $10,272,000 after acquiring an additional 36,611 shares during the period. Schrum Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Ameren during the 3rd quarter valued at $473,000. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its holdings in 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 valued at $122,549,000 after acquiring an additional 17,468 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.09% of the company’s stock.

Ameren Company Profile

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.