Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) Receives $87.80 Average Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the thirteen brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have issued a hold recommendation, six have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $87.80.

AEE has been the topic of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Ameren from $81.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Bank of America upped their target price on Ameren from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Ameren in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $97.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group began coverage on Ameren in a research report on Friday, July 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $87.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Ameren from $91.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Chonda J. Nwamu sold 1,610 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.94, for a total value of $131,923.40. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,432 shares in the company, valued at $3,640,758.08. This represents a 3.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ameren

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in Ameren by 115.3% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 366 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 196 shares during the period. First Command Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Ameren during the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in Ameren during the 1st quarter worth about $31,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC grew its holdings in Ameren by 108.1% during the 1st quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 435 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 226 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Ameren by 227.3% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 455 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 316 shares during the period. 79.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ameren Stock Performance

AEE opened at $91.21 on Monday. Ameren has a 52-week low of $67.03 and a 52-week high of $92.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.35 billion, a PE ratio of 21.17, a PEG ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.63. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $86.99 and its 200 day simple moving average is $79.49.

Ameren Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be paid a $0.67 dividend. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 11th. Ameren’s payout ratio is 63.06%.

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.