Verition Fund Management LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Ameren Corporation $AEE

Key Points

• Verition Fund Management increased its stake in Ameren by 40.7% in the fourth quarter, buying 82,676 additional shares and bringing its total to 286,031 shares worth about $28.6 million.
• Ameren reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $1.28 per share, topping estimates, while revenue rose 3.8% year over year to $2.18 billion. The company also reaffirmed guidance for FY 2026 EPS of 5.250 to 5.450.
• The utility announced a quarterly dividend of $0.75 per share, implying a 2.8% yield, and analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $117.54.

Verition Fund Management LLC grew its stake in Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) by 40.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 286,031 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 82,676 shares during the quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC owned about 0.11% of Ameren worth $28,563,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. CreativeOne Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Ameren by 1.3% in the third quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 7,448 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $777,000 after acquiring an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Kentucky Trust Co lifted its position in shares of Ameren by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Kentucky Trust Co now owns 14,759 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,474,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Ameren by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,045 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $304,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in Ameren by 45.4% during the fourth quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 349 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the period. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA lifted its position in Ameren by 6.4% during the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 1,849 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $185,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the period. 79.09% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ameren Stock Performance

NYSE AEE opened at $108.99 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.47. Ameren Corporation has a 1-year low of $93.50 and a 1-year high of $115.58. 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 business's 50-day simple moving average is $110.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $106.79.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.17 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $2.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.24 billion. Ameren had a return on equity of 10.94% and a net margin of 17.17%.The company's revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.07 EPS. Ameren has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.250-5.450 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Ameren Corporation will post 5.36 EPS for the current year.

Ameren Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 9th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 9th. Ameren's payout ratio is currently 53.96%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ameren

In other news, SVP Theresa A. Shaw sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.35, for a total value of $164,025.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 32,943 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,602,317.05. This trade represents a 4.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 0.29% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AEE has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Ameren from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $120.00 to $126.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Barclays increased their target price on Ameren from $104.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Ameren from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Monday, May 25th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Ameren from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Finally, Argus increased their target price on Ameren from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, March 23rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $117.54.

About Ameren

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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