Stock Traders Buy Large Volume of Call Options on Ameren (NYSE:AEE)

Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) was the target of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Investors purchased 2,984 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 2,268% compared to the typical volume of 126 call options.

Ameren Stock Performance

NYSE:AEE traded up $0.71 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $94.98. The stock had a trading volume of 1,054,917 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,586,188. The stock has a market cap of $25.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.35, a P/E/G ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. Ameren has a 12-month low of $67.03 and a 12-month high of $95.69. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $88.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $80.81.

Ameren Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.67 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 11th. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.82%. Ameren's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 63.06%.

Insider Activity

In other Ameren news, CFO Michael L. Moehn sold 6,500 shares of Ameren stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.15, for a total transaction of $598,975.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 205,171 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,906,507.65. The trade was a 3.07 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ameren

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Ameren by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 13,139,956 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,149,221,000 after buying an additional 334,752 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Ameren by 1.9% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,672,164 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $581,661,000 after acquiring an additional 127,287 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in Ameren by 0.9% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,561,994 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $398,992,000 after acquiring an additional 39,300 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of Ameren by 59.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,631,580 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $230,158,000 after purchasing an additional 984,879 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Ameren by 106.1% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 2,498,158 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $177,644,000 after purchasing an additional 1,286,162 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.09% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on AEE shares. Mizuho raised Ameren from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price target for the company from $82.00 to $89.00 in a report on Monday, September 16th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Ameren from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Ameren from $88.00 to $86.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Bank of America boosted their target price on Ameren from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Ameren from $77.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $87.90.

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.