HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC Sells 59,985 Shares of Ameren Corporation $AEE

Key Points

• HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in Ameren Corporation by 7.5%, holding 742,711 shares valued at approximately $74.57 million.
• Several institutional investors, including Northern Trust Corp and Brooklyn Investment Group, have increased their positions in Ameren, indicating strong institutional interest.
• Ameren recently reported earnings per share (EPS) of $1.01, beating expectations and showing a 31.2% year-over-year increase in quarterly revenue.

HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) by 7.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 742,711 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 59,985 shares during the period. Ameren comprises 4.6% of HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC owned approximately 0.27% of Ameren worth $74,568,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ameren during the first quarter valued at $25,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in Ameren in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. SouthState Corp acquired a new stake in Ameren in the first quarter worth $34,000. ORG Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ameren by 74.5% during the first quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 349 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ameren by 586.9% during the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 419 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 358 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.09% of the company's stock.

Ameren Stock Performance

Ameren stock traded down $0.4980 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $101.4920. The stock had a trading volume of 1,125,621 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,520,810. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51. Ameren Corporation has a 52-week low of $81.31 and a 52-week high of $104.10. The firm's fifty day moving average is $98.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $98.03. The company has a market capitalization of $27.44 billion, a PE ratio of 21.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.45.

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

Ameren Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 9th will be given a dividend of $0.71 per share. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 9th. Ameren's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.42%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on AEE. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Ameren from $102.00 to $100.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. KeyCorp set a $104.00 price target on shares of Ameren and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Barclays decreased their target price on Ameren from $104.00 to $100.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Ameren from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their target price for the company from $91.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on Ameren from $111.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently 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.