Vestcor Inc Grows Stock Position in Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE)

Key Points

• Vestcor Inc increased its holdings in Ameren Corporation by 16.5% in Q1, totaling 28,413 shares valued at $2.85 million.
• Ameren's recent earnings report showed a $1.01 EPS, exceeding expectations, with a revenue increase of 31.2% year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.71 per share, translating to an annualized yield of 2.8%.

Vestcor Inc boosted its stake in shares of Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) by 16.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 28,413 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 4,015 shares during the period. Vestcor Inc's holdings in Ameren were worth $2,853,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Whittier Trust Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Ameren by 29.6% during the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 499 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors lifted its holdings in shares of Ameren by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 10,107 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $901,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ameren by 3.1% during the 1st quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 4,172 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $414,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ameren by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 15,963 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,423,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ameren by 3.7% during the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 4,094 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $411,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. 79.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ameren Price Performance

NYSE AEE traded up $1.02 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $102.15. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,178,997 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,470,185. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.45. Ameren Corporation has a 1-year low of $78.91 and a 1-year high of $104.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The company's 50-day moving average is $96.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $97.33.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.82 billion. Ameren had a net margin of 14.55% and a return on equity of 10.43%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 31.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.97 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Ameren Corporation will post 4.93 EPS for the current year.

Ameren Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th were paid a $0.71 dividend. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 10th. Ameren's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.97%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on AEE shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Ameren from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. 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. Barclays cut 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. Morgan Stanley cut 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. Finally, KeyCorp set a $104.00 target price on Ameren and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Five research 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $101.36.

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.