Ameren Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:AEE)

Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Investors purchased 2,984 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 2,268% compared to the average volume of 126 call options.

Ameren Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE AEE opened at $96.63 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. Ameren has a 12-month low of $67.03 and a 12-month high of $97.29. The company has a market cap of $25.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.49. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $91.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $87.39.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. 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 research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Barclays lowered shares of Ameren from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $88.00 to $95.00 in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Ameren from $86.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Ameren from $93.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ameren presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $92.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Michael L. Moehn sold 6,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.15, for a total transaction of $598,975.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 205,171 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,906,507.65. This represents a 3.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.36% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ameren

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ameren by 8,645.7% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,160,998 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,015,410,000 after acquiring an additional 1,147,723 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Ameren by 59.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,631,580 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $230,158,000 after acquiring an additional 984,879 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in shares of Ameren by 3,738.0% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 745,872 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $65,234,000 after purchasing an additional 726,438 shares in the last quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Ameren by 484.8% during the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 637,241 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $55,733,000 after purchasing an additional 528,270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec lifted its holdings in Ameren by 26.1% during the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 2,318,537 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $202,779,000 after buying an additional 479,668 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.09% 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.