Heartland Bank & Trust Co Makes New $451,000 Investment in Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE)

Heartland Bank & Trust Co purchased a new position in Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 4,497 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $451,000.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of AEE. Principal Securities Inc. raised its position in Ameren by 32.6% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,410 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $126,000 after buying an additional 347 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Ameren by 164.6% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,564 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $139,000 after buying an additional 973 shares during the last quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP purchased a new position in Ameren in the 4th quarter worth about $9,337,000. IFP Advisors Inc raised its position in Ameren by 84.9% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,387 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $124,000 after buying an additional 637 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co raised its position in Ameren by 6.3% in the 4th quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 3,777 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $337,000 after buying an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.09% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price 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. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $114.00 price target (up from $113.00) on shares of Ameren in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. KeyCorp upgraded Ameren from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $103.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Ameren from $106.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Ameren from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $101.80.

Ameren Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AEE traded up $1.40 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $96.09. 1,432,101 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,570,136. The company's 50 day moving average price is $97.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $95.73. The firm has a market cap of $25.97 billion, a PE ratio of 21.31, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.62. Ameren Corporation has a 52 week low of $69.39 and a 52 week high of $104.10.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 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 company's revenue was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.98 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Ameren Corporation will post 4.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ameren Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be issued a $0.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.96%. Ameren's dividend payout ratio is presently 62.97%.

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.