CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co Cuts Stock Holdings in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE)

CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lessened its holdings in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) by 2.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 134,836 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 2,967 shares during the quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co owned 0.05% of Ameren worth $12,018,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of AEE. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Ameren in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ameren during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ameren in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings 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 valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. grew its position in Ameren by 86.2% during the 4th quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 540 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.09% of the company's stock.

Ameren Trading Down 0.6 %

AEE traded down $0.62 during trading on Friday, reaching $98.30. 1,488,589 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,589,610. The stock's 50-day moving average is $98.57 and its 200 day moving average is $93.87. Ameren Co. has a 12 month low of $69.39 and a 12 month high of $104.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.53 billion, a PE ratio of 22.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.45.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.83 by ($0.06). Ameren had a net margin of 15.51% and a return on equity of 10.34%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.60 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Ameren Co. will post 4.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Ameren Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th were issued a $0.71 dividend. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.89%. This is a boost from Ameren's previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 11th. Ameren's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 64.25%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AEE has been the subject of several research reports. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Ameren in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Ameren from $106.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Ameren from $102.00 to $101.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Ameren in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Ameren from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Four 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's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $99.22.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ameren

In other news, insider Shawn E. Schukar sold 4,743 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.79, for a total transaction of $492,275.97. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 57,486 shares in the company, valued at $5,966,471.94. The trade was a 7.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Craig S. Ivey sold 2,716 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.27, for a total value of $266,901.32. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 14,495 shares in the company, valued at $1,424,423.65. The trade was a 15.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,959 shares of company stock valued at $1,316,712. Corporate insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

Ameren 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.