Bank of Nova Scotia Cuts Stock Position in Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE)

Key Points

• Bank of Nova Scotia reduced its stake in Ameren Corporation by 29.0%, holding 28,077 shares valued at approximately $2.82 million.
• Ameren reported quarterly earnings of $1.01 per share, exceeding estimates, with revenue increasing by 31.2% compared to the same quarter last year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.71 per share, with a dividend yield of 2.8% and a payout ratio of 62.42%.

Bank of Nova Scotia lessened its holdings in shares of Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) by 29.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 28,077 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 11,479 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia's holdings in Ameren were worth $2,819,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Ameren in the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in Ameren in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. ORG Partners LLC lifted its stake in Ameren by 74.5% in the first quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 349 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 358 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. raised its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 207 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.09% of the company's stock.

Ameren Trading Down 0.4%

NYSE:AEE opened at $101.59 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $27.47 billion, a PE ratio of 22.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.45. Ameren Corporation has a 52-week low of $78.91 and a 52-week high of $104.10. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $97.00 and its 200 day moving average price is $97.45. 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 posted its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $2.22 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.82 billion. Ameren had a return on equity of 10.38% and a net margin of 14.55%. The company's revenue was up 31.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.97 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Ameren Corporation will post 4.93 EPS for the current year.

Ameren Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th were paid a dividend of $0.71 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Ameren's dividend payout ratio is 62.42%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Ameren from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Ameren from $102.00 to $100.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Ameren from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $91.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. Guggenheim restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Ameren in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp set a $104.00 price target on shares of Ameren and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Ameren currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $101.36.

About Ameren

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.

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