Intech Investment Management LLC Has $1.25 Million Stock Holdings in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE)

Intech Investment Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) by 55.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,987 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 17,355 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC's holdings in Ameren were worth $1,247,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AEE. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ameren in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Ameren in the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in Ameren by 134.5% in the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 544 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 312 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. grew its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ameren by 49.4% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 538 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the period. 79.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ameren

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

Remove Ads

Ameren Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE:AEE traded up $1.68 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $98.86. 1,334,679 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,436,360. The business's 50-day moving average price is $97.28 and its 200 day moving average price is $91.77. Ameren Co. has a 12 month low of $69.39 and a 12 month high of $104.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.48.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates 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 quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.60 EPS. 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. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.71 per share. The ex-dividend date is 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 yield of 2.87%. Ameren's payout ratio is presently 64.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AEE has been the subject of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Ameren from $97.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. UBS Group increased their target price on Ameren from $106.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Ameren from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Ameren from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $89.00 to $104.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Ameren from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. One 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 data from MarketBeat, Ameren presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $96.70.

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.