Private Advisor Group LLC Cuts Position in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE)

Private Advisor Group LLC lessened its stake in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) by 20.1% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,691 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 929 shares during the quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Ameren were worth $323,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in AEE. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its holdings in shares of Ameren by 25.0% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 22,931,588 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,696,022,000 after purchasing an additional 4,593,638 shares in the last quarter. Zimmer Partners LP increased its holdings in Ameren by 204.3% during the 1st quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 3,827,897 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $283,111,000 after acquiring an additional 2,569,897 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in Ameren by 106.1% during the 2nd quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 2,498,158 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $177,644,000 after acquiring an additional 1,286,162 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Ameren by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 33,092,435 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,447,516,000 after acquiring an additional 802,714 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd increased its holdings in Ameren by 192.6% during the 2nd quarter. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd now owns 1,103,565 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $78,475,000 after acquiring an additional 726,404 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.09% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Chonda J. Nwamu sold 1,610 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.94, for a total value of $131,923.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,432 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,640,758.08. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Ameren Price Performance

AEE opened at $87.78 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $86.10 and its 200 day simple moving average is $78.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.67. Ameren Co. has a 1 year low of $67.03 and a 1 year high of $89.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.41 billion, a PE ratio of 19.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.45.

Ameren Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be given a $0.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 11th. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.05%. Ameren’s dividend payout ratio is presently 60.63%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on AEE shares. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Ameren from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Mizuho upgraded shares of Ameren from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the company from $82.00 to $89.00 in a report on Monday, September 16th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Ameren in a report on Friday, July 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $87.00 target price for the company. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Ameren from $77.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Ameren from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given 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.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $87.80.

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.