Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) Shares Purchased by O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) by 49.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,209 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,014 shares during the quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC's holdings in Ameren were worth $1,088,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ameren during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Roxbury Financial LLC bought a new stake in Ameren during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ameren in the 4th quarter worth $38,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Ameren by 49.4% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 538 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. increased its stake in shares of Ameren by 86.2% during the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 540 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.09% of the company's stock.

Ameren Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of AEE stock traded up $0.72 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $97.44. 1,321,307 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,574,852. Ameren Co. has a 1 year low of $69.39 and a 1 year high of $104.10. 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 stock has a market cap of $26.30 billion, a PE ratio of 22.05, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.45. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $98.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $93.02.

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Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 previous year, the company posted $0.60 EPS. Research analysts predict that Ameren Co. will post 4.93 EPS for the current year.

Ameren Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th were paid a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.91%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 11th. This is an increase from Ameren's previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Ameren's payout ratio is presently 64.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AEE has been the topic of several recent research reports. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Ameren from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $89.00 to $104.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Ameren from $102.00 to $101.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Ameren from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Ameren from $97.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on Ameren from $106.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $99.22.

Insider Activity

In other Ameren news, EVP Chonda J. Nwamu sold 5,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.37, for a total value of $557,535.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 43,344 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,393,781.28. This represents a 11.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Craig S. Ivey sold 2,716 shares of Ameren stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.27, for a total value of $266,901.32. Following the transaction, the director now owns 14,495 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,424,423.65. The trade was a 15.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 12,959 shares of company stock valued at $1,316,712. Company insiders own 0.34% 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.