Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE) Shares Sold by US Bancorp DE

Key Points

• US Bancorp DE has reduced its holdings in Ameren Corporation by 3.1%, owning 101,304 shares valued at $10.17 million as of the latest filing.
• Ameren reported a quarterly earnings per share of $1.01, exceeding analysts' expectations and resulting in a 31.2% revenue increase year over year.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.71, with an annualized payout of $2.84 and a yield of 2.8%.

US Bancorp DE lessened its holdings in Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) by 3.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 101,304 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 3,257 shares during the quarter. US Bancorp DE's holdings in Ameren were worth $10,171,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Ameren during the first quarter worth $204,000. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ameren in the first quarter valued at $897,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Ameren by 6.0% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 16,926 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,699,000 after buying an additional 963 shares during the period. Allianz Asset Management GmbH purchased a new position in Ameren in the first quarter valued at about $13,552,000. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN raised its stake in Ameren by 1,732.4% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 3,068,505 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $273,527,000 after buying an additional 2,901,047 shares in the last quarter. 79.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ameren Price Performance

AEE stock traded down $0.42 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $101.59. The company had a trading volume of 1,492,327 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,558,898. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.56. Ameren Corporation has a 1 year low of $78.91 and a 1 year high of $104.10. The company has a market capitalization of $27.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.45. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $97.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $97.45.

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, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.00 by $0.01. The company 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 firm's revenue was up 31.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.97 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Ameren Corporation will post 4.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 given a dividend of $0.71 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Ameren's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.42%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on AEE. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Ameren from $106.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. KeyCorp set a $104.00 target price on Ameren and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Ameren from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $91.00 to $100.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Ameren from $102.00 to $100.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Ameren from $104.00 to $100.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ameren currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target 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.