American Century Companies Inc. Raises Stock Position in Ameren Corporation $AEE

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in Ameren Corporation by 28.2%, acquiring an additional 21,682 shares, bringing its total holdings to 98,565 shares valued at approximately $9.9 million.
• Ameren recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.71 per share, translating to an annual yield of 2.8%, with the payout scheduled for September 30th.
• Analysts have set a consensus target price of $101.36 for Ameren stock, with ratings ranging from Strong Buy to Hold among various equities research analysts.

American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) by 28.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 98,565 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 21,682 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc.'s holdings in Ameren were worth $9,896,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AEE. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Ameren by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,036,224 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $92,373,000 after purchasing an additional 31,288 shares in the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC boosted its stake in Ameren by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 16,513 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,472,000 after purchasing an additional 969 shares in the last quarter. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. acquired a new stake in Ameren in the 4th quarter worth approximately $499,000. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Ameren in the 4th quarter worth approximately $232,000. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Ameren by 15.8% in the 4th quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,892 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $525,000 after purchasing an additional 805 shares in the last quarter. 79.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on AEE shares. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Ameren in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Ameren from $104.00 to $100.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Ameren from $111.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. KeyCorp set a $104.00 price objective on shares of Ameren and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Ameren from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $102.80.

Ameren Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:AEE traded up $0.07 during trading on Friday, hitting $99.81. 985,850 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,436,310. The company has a quick ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51. The company has a market cap of $26.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $98.96 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $98.19. Ameren Corporation has a 52-week low of $81.31 and a 52-week high of $104.10.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.82 billion. Ameren had a net margin of 14.55% and a return on equity of 10.38%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 31.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.97 EPS. Ameren has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.850-5.050 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Ameren Corporation will post 4.93 EPS for the current year.

Ameren Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 9th. Ameren's payout ratio is 62.42%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ameren

In related news, SVP Gwendolyn G. Mizell sold 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.79, for a total value of $101,790.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 9,129 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $929,240.91. The trade was a 9.87% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.