Hsbc Holdings PLC Increases Position in Ameren Corporation $AEE

Key Points

• HSBC Holdings PLC increased its stake in Ameren by 6.4% in the first quarter, holding 431,781 shares valued at about $47.4 million at the end of the period.
• Several other institutional investors also boosted positions in Ameren, and hedge funds and other institutions own 79.09% of the company’s stock.
• Ameren reported Q1 EPS of $1.28, topping estimates, and reaffirmed a dividend of $0.75 per share quarterly, implying a 2.7% yield.

Hsbc Holdings PLC increased its position in shares of Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) by 6.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 431,781 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 25,997 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned 0.16% of Ameren worth $47,431,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Ameren by 6,051.1% in the 4th quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 932,017 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $93,071,000 after buying an additional 916,865 shares in the last quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ameren in the fourth quarter worth about $66,631,000. Aventail Capital Group LP bought a new position in shares of Ameren in the fourth quarter worth about $66,546,000. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ameren by 112.0% in the fourth quarter. Mizuho Markets Americas LLC now owns 70,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $6,990,000 after acquiring an additional 655,199 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in shares of Ameren by 9,966.5% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 518,725 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $51,800,000 after purchasing an additional 513,572 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.09% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. BTIG Research assumed coverage on Ameren in a report on Thursday, April 9th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $131.00 price target on the stock. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Ameren from $116.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $120.00 target price on shares of Ameren in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Ameren from $126.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Ameren from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, May 25th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $120.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ameren news, SVP Theresa A. Shaw sold 325 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.08, for a total value of $35,451.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 32,618 shares in the company, valued at $3,557,971.44. This trade represents a 0.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.29% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Ameren Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of NYSE AEE opened at $110.47 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The company has a market cap of $30.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.87, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.47. Ameren Corporation has a 1 year low of $96.57 and a 1 year high of $118.32. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $110.53 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $108.95.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.17 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $2.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.24 billion. Ameren had a return on equity of 10.94% and a net margin of 17.17%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.07 earnings per share. Ameren has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.250-5.450 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Ameren Corporation will post 5.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Ameren Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 9th were given a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 9th. Ameren's dividend payout ratio is 53.96%.

Ameren Profile

Ameren Corporation NYSE: AEE is an integrated energy company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, that provides electric and natural gas delivery and related services in portions of Missouri and Illinois. The company operates regulated utility businesses that serve a broad mix of residential, commercial and industrial customers, and it participates in wholesale energy markets and transmission operations that support reliable service across its service territories.

Ameren's core activities include generation, transmission and distribution of electricity, distribution of natural gas, and the provision of customer energy solutions such as demand-side management and energy efficiency programs.

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