Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE) Shares Acquired by Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Ameren Corporation by 13.0%, acquiring an additional 55,574 shares, bringing its total ownership to 482,440 shares valued at approximately $48.4 million.
• Institutional investors hold 79.09% of Ameren's stock, with several firms, including MJT & Associates and Quarry LP, making new positions during recent quarters.
• Ameren's recent earnings report showed a 31.2% increase in revenue year-over-year, reporting $1.01 EPS, which exceeded the consensus estimate of $1.00.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) by 13.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 482,440 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 55,574 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned about 0.18% of Ameren worth $48,437,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Ameren during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $204,000. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Ameren during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $897,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Ameren by 6.0% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 16,926 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,699,000 after purchasing an additional 963 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH acquired a new position in Ameren during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $13,552,000. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its stake in Ameren by 35.0% during the 1st quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 6,201 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $623,000 after purchasing an additional 1,607 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.09% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

AEE has been the topic of several recent research reports. KeyCorp set a $104.00 price objective on shares of Ameren and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Ameren from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Ameren in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Ameren from $111.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Ameren from $106.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ameren currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $101.36.

Ameren Stock Performance

NYSE AEE traded up $1.03 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $102.23. 967,515 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,729,121. The business's 50 day moving average is $97.50 and its 200-day moving average is $97.70. Ameren Corporation has a 1 year low of $80.57 and a 1 year high of $104.10. The company has a market capitalization of $27.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a current ratio of 0.80.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.00 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $2.22 billion for 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 company's revenue was up 31.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.97 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Ameren Corporation will post 4.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.