Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE) Given Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Shares of Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) have been given an average rating of "Moderate Buy" by the thirteen brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seven have assigned a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $101.36.

AEE has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Ameren from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $91.00 to $100.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Ameren from $102.00 to $100.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Ameren from $104.00 to $100.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 10th. UBS Group set a $114.00 price target on shares of Ameren and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Ameren from $106.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ameren

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of AEE. MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Ameren during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. SouthState Corp purchased a new position in shares of Ameren in the 1st quarter valued at $34,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its position in shares of Ameren by 600.0% in the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 343 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 294 shares during the last quarter. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Ameren during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Finally, ORG Partners LLC lifted its position in Ameren by 74.5% in the first quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 349 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.09% of the company's stock.

Ameren Price Performance

Shares of Ameren stock traded up $1.36 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $98.64. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,383,383 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,591,193. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $96.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $96.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The stock has a market cap of $26.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.87, a P/E/G ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.48. Ameren has a one year low of $74.87 and a one year high of $104.10.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $2.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.92 billion. Ameren had a return on equity of 10.40% and a net margin of 15.31%. Ameren's quarterly revenue was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.98 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Ameren will post 4.93 EPS for the current year.

Ameren Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th were paid a $0.71 dividend. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.88%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 10th. Ameren's payout ratio is presently 62.97%.

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.