Natixis Advisors L.P. Increases Stock Position in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE)

Natixis Advisors L.P. increased its stake in shares of Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) by 21.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 284,774 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 49,864 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P. owned approximately 0.11% of Ameren worth $20,600,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. First Command Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in Ameren during the 3rd quarter valued at $40,000. Concord Wealth Partners increased its position in shares of Ameren by 64.9% during the 3rd quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 620 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ameren by 124.5% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 624 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 346 shares during the period. CNB Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Ameren by 46.7% in the third quarter. CNB Bank now owns 641 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its position in Ameren by 93.7% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 703 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 340 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.09% of the company’s stock.

Ameren Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of AEE opened at $74.09 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $19.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 0.59 and a quick ratio of 0.40. Ameren Co. has a 1 year low of $67.03 and a 1 year high of $90.72. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $72.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $73.36.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) last posted its earnings results on Friday, May 3rd. The utilities provider reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.06 by ($0.08). The company had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.19 billion. Ameren had a net margin of 15.84% and a return on equity of 10.20%. The business’s revenue was down 11.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.00 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Ameren Co. will post 4.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ameren Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 13th were issued a $0.67 dividend. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.62%. This is a boost from Ameren’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.63. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 12th. Ameren’s payout ratio is 61.61%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ameren news, CEO Martin J. Lyons sold 7,270 shares of Ameren stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.70, for a total value of $513,989.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 246,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,422,883.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Ameren news, EVP Mark C. Lindgren sold 1,630 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.70, for a total transaction of $115,241.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 47,883 shares in the company, valued at $3,385,328.10. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Martin J. Lyons sold 7,270 shares of Ameren stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.70, for a total transaction of $513,989.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 246,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,422,883.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on AEE shares. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Ameren from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Barclays decreased their target price on Ameren from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 15th. Bank of America boosted their price target on Ameren from $77.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Ameren from $75.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Ameren in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. They set a “sell” rating and a $73.00 price objective on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $79.40.

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.