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

Allworth Financial LP lifted its stake in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) by 380.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 29,173 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 23,096 shares during the quarter. Allworth Financial LP's holdings in Ameren were worth $2,723,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in AEE. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Ameren during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. increased its stake in Ameren by 134.5% during the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 544 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 312 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. increased its stake in Ameren by 86.2% during the 4th quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 540 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new stake in Ameren during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $56,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new stake in Ameren during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $74,000. 79.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Ameren from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Barclays downgraded shares of Ameren from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $88.00 to $95.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Ameren from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $89.00 to $104.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Ameren from $86.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. One equities 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Ameren presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $92.70.

Ameren Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE AEE traded up $1.31 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $98.52. The company had a trading volume of 4,117,866 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,660,705. 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 firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $92.62 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $88.86. The stock has a market cap of $26.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.29, a PEG ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.49. Ameren Co. has a 52-week low of $69.39 and a 52-week high of $100.61.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.83 by ($0.06). Ameren had a net margin of 15.51% and a return on equity of 10.34%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.60 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Ameren Co. will post 4.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Ameren Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be given a $0.71 dividend. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.88%. This is an increase from Ameren's previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 11th. Ameren's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.25%.

Insider Activity at Ameren

In related news, Director Craig S. Ivey sold 2,716 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.27, for a total transaction of $266,901.32. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 14,495 shares in the company, valued at $1,424,423.65. This represents a 15.78 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.42% 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.