Brokerages Set Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) Target Price at $79.90

Shares of Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) have received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the ten ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $79.90.

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Ameren from $76.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Ameren in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $73.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ameren from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 8th. Bank of America increased their price target on Ameren from $77.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on Ameren from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 15th.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Martin J. Lyons sold 7,270 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.70, for a total transaction of $513,989.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 246,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,422,883.80. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, CEO Martin J. Lyons sold 7,270 shares of Ameren stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.70, for a total value of $513,989.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 246,434 shares in the company, valued at $17,422,883.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Mark C. Lindgren sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.53, for a total transaction of $302,120.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 43,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,318,410.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 12,900 shares of company stock worth $931,350 over the last three months. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ameren

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. lifted its holdings in Ameren by 5.5% in the 1st quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 2,992 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $221,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Ameren by 1.5% in the first quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,487 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $850,000 after buying an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ameren by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 7,414 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $536,000 after buying an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. boosted its position in Ameren by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,051 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $221,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Concord Wealth Partners boosted its position in Ameren by 52.8% during the first quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 550 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.09% of the company’s stock.

Ameren Price Performance

Shares of AEE opened at $71.34 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $19.02 billion, a PE ratio of 16.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 0.59 and a quick ratio of 0.40. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $73.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $73.07. Ameren has a 1-year low of $67.03 and a 1-year high of $88.72.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 9th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.06 by ($0.08). Ameren had a net margin of 15.84% and a return on equity of 10.20%. The firm had revenue of $1.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.19 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.00 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Ameren will post 4.58 EPS for the current year.

Ameren Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 12th will be given a dividend of $0.67 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 12th. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.76%. Ameren’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.61%.

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.