Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) Short Interest Update

Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) saw a large decrease in short interest in the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 2,770,000 shares, a decrease of 11.2% from the October 15th total of 3,120,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,370,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.0 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on AEE. Mizuho raised shares of Ameren from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $82.00 to $89.00 in a research note on Monday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Ameren from $91.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. 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 on the stock. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Ameren from $77.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on 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 assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $87.80.

Ameren Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of AEE traded up $1.50 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $91.22. The company had a trading volume of 1,447,521 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,544,125. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The company has a market capitalization of $24.35 billion, a PE ratio of 21.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.45. Ameren has a one year low of $67.03 and a one year high of $92.77. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $87.15 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $79.65.

Ameren Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be issued a $0.67 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 11th. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.94%. Ameren’s dividend payout ratio is presently 63.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Chonda J. Nwamu sold 1,610 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,432 shares in the company, valued at $3,640,758.08. The trade was a 3.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Ameren

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in Ameren by 115.3% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 366 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Ameren during the second quarter worth $26,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ameren during the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Ameren by 108.1% in the 1st quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 435 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Ameren by 227.3% in the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 455 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 316 shares in the last quarter. 79.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.