Allianz Asset Management GmbH Makes New Investment in Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE)

Key Points

• Allianz Asset Management GmbH acquired a new stake in Ameren Corporation, purchasing 134,979 shares valued at approximately $13,552,000 in the first quarter of the year.
• A number of institutional investors have increased their holdings in Ameren, bringing the ownership by hedge funds and institutional investors to 79.09%.
• Wall Street analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Ameren, with price targets ranging from $101.36 to $114.00 from various investment firms.

Allianz Asset Management GmbH acquired a new stake in shares of Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 134,979 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $13,552,000. Allianz Asset Management GmbH owned 0.05% of Ameren as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its stake in shares of Ameren by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 27,048,729 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,411,125,000 after purchasing an additional 392,170 shares during the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Ameren by 16.7% during the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 17,038,754 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,518,835,000 after buying an additional 2,439,811 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ameren by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,749,446 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $600,157,000 after buying an additional 77,282 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings 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 buying an additional 2,539,129 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Ameren by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,601,449 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $410,174,000 after buying an additional 39,455 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.09% of the company's stock.

Ameren Stock Performance

NYSE AEE traded up $0.11 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $100.15. The stock had a trading volume of 1,059,004 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,469,824. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $96.43 and a 200 day moving average of $96.95. The stock has a market cap of $27.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.48. Ameren Corporation has a 52-week low of $77.08 and a 52-week high of $104.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.86.

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

Ameren Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on AEE. KeyCorp set a $104.00 price target on shares of Ameren and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Ameren from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Barclays reduced their target price on Ameren from $104.00 to $100.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. UBS Group upped their target price on Ameren from $111.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Ameren from $102.00 to $100.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ameren currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $101.36.

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.