Ameren Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:AEE)

Key Points

• Ameren Corporation experienced a 2,268% increase in call options trading, with 2,984 call options purchased on Wednesday compared to the average of 126.
• The company reported $1.01 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations and marking a 31.2% year-over-year revenue growth.
• Ameren declared a quarterly dividend of $0.71 per share, amounting to an annualized dividend yield of 2.8% and a payout ratio of 62.42%.

Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) saw some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Investors purchased 2,984 call options on the company. Thisisanincreaseof2,268% compared to the average volume of 126 call options.

Ameren Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AEE traded down $0.91 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $101.41. 1,006,090 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,738,175. Ameren has a one year low of $78.91 and a one year high of $104.10. The company's 50 day moving average is $97.34 and its 200 day moving average is $97.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.45.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.01. Ameren had a return on equity of 10.38% and a net margin of 14.55%. The business had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.82 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.97 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 31.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Ameren will post 4.93 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AEE. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Ameren from $104.00 to $100.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Ameren from $111.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Ameren from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $91.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. KeyCorp set a $104.00 target price on Ameren and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a "neutral" rating on shares of Ameren in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $101.36.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Ameren during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $7,323,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Ameren by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 94,351 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $8,410,000 after acquiring an additional 4,080 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in Ameren by 59.2% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 207,412 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $18,489,000 after acquiring an additional 77,113 shares in the last quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new position in shares of Ameren during the fourth quarter valued at $73,000. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ameren by 96.5% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,170,709 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $460,917,000 after purchasing an additional 2,539,129 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.09% of the company's stock.

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.