Ameren Corporation $AEE Shares Sold by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group trimmed its stake in Ameren by 4.2% in Q4, selling 27,916 shares and now holds 637,359 shares (about 0.24% of the company) worth roughly $63.65 million.
• Ameren raised its quarterly dividend to $0.75 (annualized $3.00), up from $0.71, implying a ~2.7% yield and a payout ratio around 56%.
• Ameren reported Q4 EPS of $0.78 (vs. $0.77 consensus) and revenue of $1.78 billion (beat estimates) despite revenue declining 8.2% year-over-year; analysts' consensus is a "Hold" with an average target near $114.92.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. lessened its stake in Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) by 4.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 637,359 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 27,916 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned 0.24% of Ameren worth $63,647,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in AEE. CreativeOne Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Ameren by 1.3% in the third quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 7,448 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $777,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Kentucky Trust Co grew its holdings in Ameren by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Kentucky Trust Co now owns 14,759 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,474,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Ameren by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,941 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $307,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. Keb Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Ameren by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Keb Asset Management LLC now owns 12,568 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,312,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LVW Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ameren by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter. LVW Advisors LLC now owns 2,921 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $305,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. 79.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ameren Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of Ameren stock opened at $111.91 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.10 and a 200-day simple moving average of $105.16. The stock has a market cap of $30.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.92, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.52. Ameren Corporation has a 12-month low of $93.27 and a 12-month high of $115.53.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The utilities provider reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.01. Ameren had a net margin of 16.55% and a return on equity of 10.69%. The firm had revenue of $1.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.69 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.77 EPS. Ameren's revenue for the quarter was down 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Ameren Corporation will post 4.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ameren Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th were issued a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 10th. This is an increase from Ameren's previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. Ameren's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.07%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ameren

In related news, insider Michael L. Moehn sold 6,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.60, for a total value of $673,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 193,076 shares of the company's stock, valued at $20,002,673.60. This represents a 3.26% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on AEE. Morgan Stanley set a $116.00 target price on shares of Ameren in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Wall Street Zen cut Ameren from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday. Argus lifted their price target on Ameren from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $116.00 price objective on shares of Ameren in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on Ameren from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 15th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ameren has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $114.92.

Ameren Profile

Ameren Corporation NYSE: AEE is an integrated energy company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, that provides electric and natural gas delivery and related services in portions of Missouri and Illinois. The company operates regulated utility businesses that serve a broad mix of residential, commercial and industrial customers, and it participates in wholesale energy markets and transmission operations that support reliable service across its service territories.

Ameren's core activities include generation, transmission and distribution of electricity, distribution of natural gas, and the provision of customer energy solutions such as demand-side management and energy efficiency programs.

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