Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) EVP Sells $557,535.00 in Stock

Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) EVP Chonda J. Nwamu sold 5,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.37, for a total transaction of $557,535.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 43,344 shares in the company, valued at $4,393,781.28. The trade was a 11.26 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Ameren Price Performance

AEE stock traded down $3.66 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $100.01. The stock had a trading volume of 2,791,420 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,425,040. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $94.39 and its 200 day simple moving average is $90.06. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The company has a market cap of $26.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.49. Ameren Co. has a 52-week low of $69.39 and a 52-week high of $106.06.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.83 by ($0.06). Ameren had a return on equity of 10.34% and a net margin of 15.51%. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.60 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Ameren Co. will post 4.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ameren Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.84%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 11th. This is a positive change from Ameren’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Ameren’s payout ratio is currently 64.25%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Ameren from $86.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Ameren from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $89.00 to $104.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Ameren from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Ameren from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ameren currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $93.40.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ameren by 7.1% during the 4th quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,846 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $165,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC raised its holdings in Ameren by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 8,513 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $745,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the period. CWA Asset Management Group LLC raised its holdings in Ameren by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 4,786 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $427,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in Ameren by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 6,276 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $559,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Finally, Captrust Financial Advisors raised its holdings in Ameren by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 10,107 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $901,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.09% of the company’s stock.

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.