Ameren Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:AEE)

Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Stock investors purchased 2,984 call options on the company. This is an increase of 2,268% compared to the average daily volume of 126 call options.

Insider Transactions at Ameren

In other Ameren news, EVP Chonda J. Nwamu sold 1,610 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.94, for a total transaction of $131,923.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,432 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,640,758.08. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in AEE. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Ameren by 493.0% during the first quarter. Koshinski Asset Management Inc. now owns 21,728 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,607,000 after buying an additional 18,064 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in Ameren by 392.0% during the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 19,434 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,382,000 after purchasing an additional 15,484 shares during the period. Magnetar Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Ameren during the 2nd quarter worth $2,632,000. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its holdings in Ameren by 137.2% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 100,154 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $7,407,000 after purchasing an additional 57,923 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versor Investments LP purchased a new position in Ameren in the third quarter valued at about $1,417,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.09% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays lifted their price target on Ameren from $77.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Ameren in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $97.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Ameren from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. UBS Group started coverage on Ameren in a report on Friday, July 19th. They set a "buy" rating and a $87.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Ameren from $91.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $87.80.

Ameren Trading Down 1.5 %

NYSE AEE traded down $1.38 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $90.01. 809,676 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,596,056. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.45. The business's 50 day moving average is $86.87 and its 200-day moving average is $79.42. Ameren has a 12-month low of $67.03 and a 12-month high of $92.77.

Ameren Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.67 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 11th. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.98%. Ameren's dividend payout ratio is presently 63.06%.

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.