Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) Shares Acquired by Millennium Management LLC

Millennium Management LLC raised its holdings in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) by 76.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,134,288 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 926,126 shares during the quarter. Millennium Management LLC owned approximately 0.80% of Ameren worth $190,250,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. TD Private Client Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Ameren by 7.1% in the fourth quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,846 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $165,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its stake in Ameren by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 6,276 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $559,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its stake in Ameren by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 10,107 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $901,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. boosted its stake in Ameren by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 9,937 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $886,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its stake in Ameren by 16.3% during the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 980 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $87,000 after buying an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.09% of the company's stock.

Ameren Price Performance

Shares of AEE traded up $1.17 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $97.99. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,254,623 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,568,487. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.51. Ameren Co. has a 1-year low of $69.39 and a 1-year high of $104.10. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $98.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $94.87. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.08 by ($0.01). Ameren had a net margin of 15.51% and a return on equity of 10.34%. The firm had revenue of $2.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.92 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.98 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Ameren Co. will post 4.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ameren Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be paid a $0.71 dividend. This represents a $2.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 10th. Ameren's payout ratio is currently 62.97%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on AEE shares. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Ameren from $106.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. KeyCorp upgraded Ameren from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $103.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays lifted their target price on Ameren from $101.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Ameren from $108.00 to $112.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded Ameren from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $89.00 to $104.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ameren presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $101.80.

Insider Activity at Ameren

In other Ameren news, Director Craig S. Ivey sold 2,716 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.27, for a total transaction of $266,901.32. Following the sale, the director now owns 14,495 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,424,423.65. This represents a 15.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Shawn E. Schukar sold 4,743 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.79, for a total value of $492,275.97. Following the sale, the insider now owns 57,486 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,966,471.94. This trade represents a 7.62% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 12,959 shares of company stock valued at $1,316,712 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

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.