Swiss National Bank Lowers Position in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE)

Swiss National Bank cut its position in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) by 4.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 753,800 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 37,600 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank owned approximately 0.28% of Ameren worth $67,194,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Ameren in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new position in Ameren in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. raised its holdings in Ameren by 134.5% in the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 544 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 312 shares during the last quarter. Mather Group LLC. raised its holdings in Ameren by 86.2% in the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 540 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Ameren by 49.4% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 538 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 178 shares during the last quarter. 79.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, 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 value of $557,535.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 43,344 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,393,781.28. The trade was a 11.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Shawn E. Schukar sold 4,743 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was 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 sold a total of 12,959 shares of company stock worth $1,316,712 over the last three months. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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Ameren Stock Performance

NYSE AEE traded up $0.28 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $100.13. 2,155,020 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,761,112. The business's fifty day moving average price is $96.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $91.22. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $27.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.48. Ameren Co. has a 52 week low of $69.39 and a 52 week high of $104.10.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.83 by ($0.06). Ameren had a net margin of 15.51% and a return on equity of 10.34%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.60 EPS. Equities 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 will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be given a $0.71 dividend. This is a positive change from Ameren's previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.84%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. Ameren's dividend payout ratio is presently 64.25%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on AEE. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price 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. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target 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. Barclays lifted their price target 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, Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Ameren from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $89.00 to $104.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target 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.