UniSuper Management Pty Ltd Boosts Holdings in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE)

UniSuper Management Pty Ltd raised its stake in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) by 1.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 541,515 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 5,101 shares during the period. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd owned 0.20% of Ameren worth $48,271,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Ameren by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,095,734 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $97,674,000 after purchasing an additional 30,857 shares during the last quarter. Elo Mutual Pension Insurance Co purchased a new stake in Ameren in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,784,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Ameren by 11.1% in the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 426,866 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $37,927,000 after acquiring an additional 42,803 shares in the last quarter. Korea Investment CORP grew its stake in shares of Ameren by 57.8% during the fourth quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 210,806 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $18,791,000 after acquiring an additional 77,200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp raised its position in shares of Ameren by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp now owns 184,188 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $16,419,000 after purchasing an additional 1,561 shares during the last quarter. 79.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on AEE. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Ameren from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays increased their price objective on Ameren from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Ameren from $97.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Ameren from $106.00 to $113.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI raised Ameren from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $89.00 to $104.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ameren currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $96.70.

Ameren Price Performance

AEE stock traded up $0.50 during trading on Monday, hitting $100.20. The stock had a trading volume of 629,598 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,529,163. Ameren Co. has a twelve month low of $69.39 and a twelve month high of $104.10. The company's 50-day moving average price is $97.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $92.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.68, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.48.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.77 earnings per share 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 period in the previous year, the business posted $0.60 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Ameren Co. will post 4.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ameren Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.83%. This is an increase from Ameren's previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 11th. Ameren's payout ratio is 64.25%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Chonda J. Nwamu sold 5,500 shares of Ameren stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.37, for a total transaction of $557,535.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 43,344 shares in the company, 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Shawn E. Schukar sold 4,743 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.79, for a total value of $492,275.97. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 57,486 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,966,471.94. The trade was a 7.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 12,959 shares of company stock worth $1,316,712. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Ameren 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.