Ameren (NYSE:AEE) Hits New 12-Month High - What's Next?

Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $89.61 and last traded at $89.61, with a volume of 448060 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $86.55.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AEE has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Ameren from $81.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Ameren from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Barclays increased their target price on Ameren from $77.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Ameren in a research report on Friday, July 19th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $87.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Mizuho upgraded Ameren from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $82.00 to $89.00 in a research report on Monday, September 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $87.80.

Ameren Trading Up 4.2 %

The firm has a market cap of $24.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $86.10 and a 200-day moving average price of $78.85.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.87 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.91 by ($0.04). Ameren had a net margin of 15.52% and a return on equity of 10.17%. The firm had revenue of $2.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.21 billion. As a group, research analysts expect that Ameren Co. will post 4.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ameren Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be given a dividend of $0.67 per share. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 11th. Ameren's payout ratio is currently 63.06%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ameren news, EVP Chonda J. Nwamu sold 1,610 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.94, for a total transaction of $131,923.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,432 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,640,758.08. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.42% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in Ameren by 115.3% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 366 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Ameren in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new stake in Ameren during the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC boosted its position in Ameren by 108.1% during the 1st quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 435 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 226 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Ameren by 227.3% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 455 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 316 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.09% of the company's stock.

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.

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