Ameren (NYSE:AEE) Price Target Raised to $85.00

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) had its target price lifted by Morgan Stanley from $81.00 to $85.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Several other equities analysts also recently issued reports on AEE. Mizuho raised shares of Ameren from a neutral rating to an outperform rating and raised their price target for the company from $82.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Ameren from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Ameren from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Argus raised Ameren to a strong-buy rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Ameren in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a buy rating and a $97.00 target price for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $85.33.

Ameren Trading Up 0.5 %

NYSE AEE opened at $86.49 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $23.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.45. Ameren has a twelve month low of $67.03 and a twelve month high of $87.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The business’s fifty day moving average is $81.90 and its 200 day moving average is $75.79.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.93 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $1.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.87 billion. Ameren had a return on equity of 10.20% and a net margin of 16.28%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.90 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Ameren will post 4.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ameren Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.67 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 11th. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.10%. Ameren’s dividend payout ratio is currently 61.61%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Chonda J. Nwamu sold 1,610 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.94, for a total transaction of $131,923.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,432 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,640,758.08. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ameren

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of AEE. Kentucky Retirement Systems increased its stake in Ameren by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems now owns 20,095 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,429,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. increased its position in shares of Ameren by 1.4% during the second quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 9,803 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $697,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Ameren by 5.5% in the 1st quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 2,992 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $221,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its position in Ameren by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 7,414 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $536,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in Ameren by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,051 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $221,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. 79.09% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.