Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) Shares Sold by Altshuler Shaham Ltd

Altshuler Shaham Ltd cut its holdings in shares of Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) by 13.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,366 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 531 shares during the period. Altshuler Shaham Ltd’s holdings in Ameren were worth $243,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AEE. EdgeRock Capital LLC acquired a new position in Ameren during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. First Command Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in Ameren during the third quarter worth $40,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its stake in Ameren by 124.5% during the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 624 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 346 shares during the last quarter. Concord Wealth Partners boosted its stake in Ameren by 64.9% during the third quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 620 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CNB Bank boosted its stake in Ameren by 46.7% during the third quarter. CNB Bank now owns 641 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. 79.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Ameren

In related news, EVP Mark C. Lindgren sold 1,630 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, 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 legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, EVP Mark C. Lindgren sold 1,630 shares of the 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 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 document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Martin J. Lyons sold 7,270 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 246,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,422,883.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Ameren Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:AEE traded up $0.54 on Thursday, hitting $74.77. 1,359,320 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,737,824. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $73.00 and its 200 day moving average is $73.34. The company has a market capitalization of $19.93 billion, a PE ratio of 17.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.44. Ameren Co. has a 1-year low of $67.03 and a 1-year high of $90.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.59.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 9th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.06 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.19 billion. Ameren had a return on equity of 10.20% and a net margin of 15.84%. The company’s revenue was down 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.00 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Ameren Co. will post 4.59 EPS for the current year.

Ameren Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 13th were given a dividend of $0.67 per share. This is a boost from Ameren’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.63. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 12th. Ameren’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have commented on AEE. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Ameren in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $73.00 target price on the stock. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Ameren from $76.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday. StockNews.com upgraded Ameren from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays reduced their target price on Ameren from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price objective on Ameren from $77.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $79.90.

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.