Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Sells 674,559 Shares of Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. decreased its position in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) by 90.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 71,313 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 674,559 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Ameren were worth $6,357,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in AEE. AdvisorNet Financial Inc increased its stake in shares of Ameren by 17.6% in the 4th quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 1,448 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $129,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank lifted its holdings in shares of Ameren by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 57,876 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,159,000 after purchasing an additional 3,523 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ameren by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 8,489 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $757,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. grew its stake in shares of Ameren by 134.5% in the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 544 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $48,000 after buying an additional 312 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Ameren by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 16,064 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,405,000 after buying an additional 232 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.09% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ameren 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 value of $598,975.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 205,171 shares of the company’s stock, 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on AEE shares. Barclays boosted their target price on Ameren from $77.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Ameren from $93.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Ameren from $86.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $89.89.

Ameren Stock Performance

Shares of AEE stock opened at $94.31 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $90.91 and a 200-day moving average price of $85.57. Ameren Co. has a 52 week low of $67.03 and a 52 week high of $95.69. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.17 billion, a PE ratio of 22.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.48.

Ameren 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.