Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) Short Interest Down 19.9% in March

Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant drop in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 4,470,000 shares, a drop of 19.9% from the March 15th total of 5,580,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,910,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.3 days. Approximately 1.7% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Ameren Stock Down 0.1 %

NYSE AEE traded down $0.13 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $99.02. The company had a trading volume of 206,660 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,581,917. The firm's 50 day moving average is $98.54 and its 200 day moving average is $93.56. The company has a market capitalization of $26.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.45. Ameren has a fifty-two week low of $69.39 and a fifty-two week high of $104.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.44.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.77 earnings per share (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 period last year, the business posted $0.60 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Ameren will post 4.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ameren Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th were paid a $0.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 11th. This is an increase from Ameren's previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.87%. Ameren's dividend payout ratio is 64.25%.

Insider Activity at Ameren

In other Ameren news, EVP Chonda J. Nwamu sold 5,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.37, for a total value of $557,535.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 43,344 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,393,781.28. This represents a 11.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Shawn E. Schukar sold 4,743 shares of Ameren stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.79, for a total transaction of $492,275.97. Following the sale, the insider now owns 57,486 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,966,471.94. This trade represents a 7.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 12,959 shares of company stock valued at $1,316,712 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Ameren

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ameren during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new position in Ameren during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Ameren in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. ORG Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Ameren by 74.5% in the 1st quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 349 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new position in Ameren in the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. 79.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on AEE shares. Evercore ISI raised Ameren from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $89.00 to $104.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Ameren from $106.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Ameren from $102.00 to $101.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Ameren from $97.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Ameren from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ameren currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $99.22.

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.