Nuveen Asset Management LLC Decreases Stake in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE)

Nuveen Asset Management LLC lessened its position in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE - Free Report) by 17.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,487,029 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 513,469 shares during the quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC owned about 0.93% of Ameren worth $221,694,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. TD Private Client Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Ameren by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 1,846 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $165,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ameren by 2.0% in 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 in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position 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 acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. grew its stake in Ameren by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 9,937 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $886,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its holdings in Ameren by 16.3% in the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 980 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $87,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.09% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Ameren

In other Ameren news, Director Craig S. Ivey sold 2,716 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 14,495 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,424,423.65. This trade represents a 15.78% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Shawn E. Schukar sold 4,743 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 57,486 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,966,471.94. The trade was a 7.62% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 12,959 shares of company stock worth $1,316,712. Insiders own 0.42% of the company's stock.

Ameren Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of Ameren stock traded up $0.81 on Monday, reaching $98.83. 1,751,043 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,569,217. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $98.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $94.92. The company has a market cap of $26.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.36, a price-to-earnings-growth 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 company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.44.

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

Ameren Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be given a dividend of $0.71 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.87%. Ameren's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.97%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Ameren from $106.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Ameren in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Evercore ISI raised shares of Ameren from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $89.00 to $104.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Ameren from $106.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Finally, KeyCorp upgraded shares of Ameren from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $103.00 target price on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $101.80.

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.