Ameren (NYSE:AEE) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.04 EPS

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The utilities provider reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.04, Briefing.com reports. Ameren had a return on equity of 10.26% and a net margin of 16.28%. The business had revenue of $1.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.87 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.90 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. Ameren updated its FY24 guidance to $4.52-4.72 EPS and its FY 2024 guidance to 4.520-4.720 EPS.

Ameren Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE:AEE traded up $1.27 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $82.53. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,132,414 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,307,366. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $73.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $72.33. Ameren has a 1 year low of $67.03 and a 1 year high of $85.74. The firm has a market cap of $22.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31.

Ameren Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 12th were issued a dividend of $0.67 per share. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, June 12th. Ameren’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 61.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Mark C. Lindgren sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.53, for a total transaction of $302,120.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 43,935 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,318,410.55. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director Rafael Flores sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.29, for a total value of $106,935.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 13,768 shares in the company, valued at approximately $981,520.72. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Mark C. Lindgren sold 4,000 shares of Ameren stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.53, for a total value of $302,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 43,935 shares in the company, valued at $3,318,410.55. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Bank of America upped their target price on Ameren from $77.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Ameren in a research note on Friday, July 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $87.00 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. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of Ameren from $81.00 to $80.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Finally, Barclays upgraded Ameren from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $73.00 to $77.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $79.91.

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.