First Horizon Advisors Inc. Has $33,000 Position in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE)

First Horizon Advisors Inc. trimmed its position in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) by 35.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 454 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 249 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Ameren were worth $33,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

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

Insider Transactions at Ameren

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

Ameren Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:AEE opened at $74.23 on Thursday. Ameren Co. has a one year low of $67.03 and a one year high of $90.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 0.59 and a quick ratio of 0.40. The company has a market cap of $19.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.06, a PEG ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.44. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $72.87 and a 200 day simple moving average of $73.32.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 3rd. The utilities provider reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by ($0.08). Ameren had a net margin of 15.84% and a return on equity of 10.20%. The firm had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.19 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.00 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Ameren Co. will post 4.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ameren Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 13th were paid a dividend of $0.67 per share. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.61%. This is a positive change from Ameren’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.63. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 12th. Ameren’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AEE. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Ameren in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. They set a “sell” rating and a $73.00 target price for the company. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Ameren from $77.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ameren from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Ameren from $76.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Ameren from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $79.90.

Ameren 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.