Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) Shares Sold by Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC

Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC cut its holdings in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) by 45.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,231 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 9,323 shares during the quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC's holdings in Ameren were worth $1,001,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ameren in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Roxbury Financial LLC bought a new stake in Ameren during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of Ameren in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new stake in Ameren in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. lifted its stake in Ameren by 78.7% in the 4th quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 470 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares in the last quarter. 79.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Ameren Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of NYSE AEE traded down $1.28 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $95.42. 216,275 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,559,305. The company has a market cap of $25.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.51. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $97.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $95.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. Ameren Co. has a one year low of $69.39 and a one year high of $104.10.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 15.51% and a return on equity of 10.34%. The firm's revenue was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.98 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Ameren Co. will post 4.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ameren Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be given a $0.71 dividend. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.98%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 10th. Ameren's payout ratio is currently 62.97%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Chonda J. Nwamu sold 5,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.37, for a total transaction of $557,535.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 43,344 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,393,781.28. This represents a 11.26% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Shawn E. Schukar sold 4,743 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.79, for a total value of $492,275.97. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 57,486 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,966,471.94. This trade represents a 7.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on AEE. Barclays lifted 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. Guggenheim reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Ameren in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Ameren from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Ameren from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $103.00 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Ameren from $106.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ameren currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $101.90.

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.