Schrum Private Wealth Management LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE)

Schrum Private Wealth Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) by 56.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,035 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 6,523 shares during the period. Schrum Private Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Ameren were worth $449,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ameren in the fourth quarter valued at $19,367,000. First Business Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in Ameren during the 4th quarter valued at $994,000. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its stake in Ameren by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 77,497 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $6,908,000 after acquiring an additional 1,097 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Ameren during the 4th quarter valued at $4,180,000. Finally, M&T Bank Corp grew its position in shares of Ameren by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 24,669 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,199,000 after buying an additional 1,998 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.09% of the company's stock.

Ameren Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of AEE traded up $0.55 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $99.14. The company had a trading volume of 2,308,379 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,427,331. The company's 50 day moving average price is $94.85 and its 200 day moving average price is $90.39. Ameren Co. has a 52 week low of $69.39 and a 52 week high of $104.10. The stock has a market cap of $26.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.43, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41.

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Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.77 EPS 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 company earned $0.60 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Ameren Co. will post 4.93 EPS for the current year.

Ameren Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.71 per share. This is a positive change from Ameren's previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.86%. Ameren's dividend payout ratio is 64.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ameren

In other Ameren news, Director Craig S. Ivey sold 2,716 shares of Ameren stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.27, for a total value of $266,901.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 14,495 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,424,423.65. The trade was a 15.78 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Shawn E. Schukar sold 4,743 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 57,486 shares in the company, valued at $5,966,471.94. This trade represents a 7.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 12,959 shares of company stock worth $1,316,712 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Ameren from $86.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Ameren from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $89.00 to $104.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Ameren from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Ameren from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $93.40.

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.