Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading on Wednesday. Traders acquired 2,984 call options on the company. This is an increase of 2,268% compared to the average volume of 126 call options.
Ameren Stock Performance
AEE opened at $95.15 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $96.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $95.76. The company has a market capitalization of $25.72 billion, a PE ratio of 21.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.49. Ameren has a 1 year low of $69.39 and a 1 year high of $104.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.62.
Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.08 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $2.10 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.92 billion. Ameren had a net margin of 15.31% and a return on equity of 10.40%. The business's revenue was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.98 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Ameren will post 4.93 EPS for the current year.
Ameren Announces Dividend
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be given a dividend of $0.71 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.98%. Ameren's payout ratio is 62.97%.
Analyst Ratings Changes
AEE has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. KeyCorp raised Ameren from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $103.00 target price on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Ameren from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Guggenheim reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Ameren in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Ameren from $106.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Ameren from $101.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $101.64.
Read Our Latest Stock Report on Ameren
Institutional Trading of Ameren
Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its position in shares of Ameren by 14.4% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 10,174 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $907,000 after acquiring an additional 1,282 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ameren during the 4th quarter worth $19,367,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Ameren by 49.4% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 538 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 178 shares during the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ameren during the 1st quarter worth $204,000. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its position in shares of Ameren by 1,732.4% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 3,068,505 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $273,527,000 after buying an additional 2,901,047 shares during the last quarter. 79.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
About Ameren
(
Get Free Report)
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.
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