National Bank of Canada FI Purchases 7,634 Shares of Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE)

Key Points

• National Bank of Canada FI increased its holdings in Ameren Corporation by 2.8% in Q1, owning 278,422 shares valued at approximately $27.95 million.
• Ameren reported earnings of $1.01 EPS for the last quarter, slightly beating analysts' expectations while revenue surged 31.2% year-over-year to $2.22 billion.
• Several analysts have adjusted their price targets for Ameren, with an average price target of $101.36 and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

National Bank of Canada FI increased its holdings in Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) by 2.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 278,422 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 7,634 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI owned approximately 0.10% of Ameren worth $27,951,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of AEE. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Ameren by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 94,351 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $8,410,000 after purchasing an additional 4,080 shares during the last quarter. Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in Ameren by 5.9% in the fourth quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 23,143 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,046,000 after purchasing an additional 1,295 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia increased its position in Ameren by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 39,556 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,526,000 after purchasing an additional 731 shares during the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new stake in Ameren in the fourth quarter worth $259,000. Finally, Martingale Asset Management L P increased its position in Ameren by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P now owns 7,436 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $663,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.09% of the company's stock.

Ameren Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of AEE stock traded down $0.88 on Friday, hitting $100.55. The stock had a trading volume of 471,790 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,719,038. 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 business has a 50 day moving average price of $97.72 and a 200 day moving average price of $97.78. The company has a market cap of $27.19 billion, a PE ratio of 22.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.45. Ameren Corporation has a one year low of $81.31 and a one year high of $104.10.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last released 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 firm 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 firm's quarterly revenue was up 31.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.97 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Ameren Corporation will post 4.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on AEE shares. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Ameren from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $91.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective 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. KeyCorp set a $104.00 price objective on shares of Ameren and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Ameren from $106.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a "neutral" rating on shares of Ameren in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $101.36.

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.