Principal Financial Group Inc. Buys 19,217 Shares of Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE)

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 331,801 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 19,217 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.12% of Ameren worth $29,019,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in Ameren during the 3rd quarter valued at $74,000. Tudor Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ameren during the third quarter valued at about $463,000. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Ameren in the third quarter worth about $215,000. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Ameren by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,087 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $446,000 after buying an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Ameren by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,672,164 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $581,661,000 after buying an additional 127,287 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.09% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on AEE shares. Argus upgraded shares of Ameren to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Mizuho upgraded Ameren from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $82.00 to $89.00 in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Ameren in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $97.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Ameren from $91.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Ameren from $86.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $89.89.

Ameren Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of Ameren stock traded up $1.20 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $90.89. The stock had a trading volume of 845,312 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,570,519. Ameren Co. has a 1 year low of $67.03 and a 1 year high of $95.69. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $90.18 and a 200 day simple moving average of $83.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The company has a market capitalization of $24.26 billion, a PE ratio of 21.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.47.

Ameren Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.67 per share. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.95%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 11th. Ameren's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.06%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Michael L. Moehn sold 6,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.15, for a total value of $598,975.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 205,171 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,906,507.65. This represents a 3.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.36% 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.