Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE) Stake Raised by Vestcor Inc

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

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ameren during the 1st quarter worth $25,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Ameren in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. ORG Partners LLC grew its stake in Ameren by 74.5% in the 1st quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 349 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its stake in Ameren by 586.9% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 419 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 358 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. grew 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 valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 207 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.09% of the company's stock.

Ameren Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of AEE traded down $1.21 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $102.05. 796,032 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,741,660. The firm has a market cap of $27.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.45. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $96.89 and a 200 day simple moving average of $97.42. Ameren Corporation has a 12-month low of $78.91 and a 12-month high of $104.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.82 billion. Ameren had a net margin of 14.55% and a return on equity of 10.38%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 31.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.97 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Ameren Corporation will post 4.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ameren Announces Dividend

The business 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 was Tuesday, June 10th. Ameren's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.42%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Guggenheim reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Ameren in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target 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. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Ameren from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $91.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. KeyCorp set a $104.00 price objective on shares of Ameren and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Ameren from $104.00 to $100.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price 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.