Summit X LLC Lowers Holdings in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE)

Summit X LLC lessened its stake in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) by 0.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 20,960 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 115 shares during the quarter. Summit X LLC’s holdings in Ameren were worth $1,868,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Metis Global Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Ameren by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 8,513 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $745,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC increased its holdings in Ameren by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 4,786 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $427,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its holdings in Ameren by 16.3% in the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 980 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $87,000 after buying an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC increased its holdings in Ameren by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 9,110 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $797,000 after buying an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC increased its holdings in Ameren by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 7,665 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $683,000 after buying an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.09% of the company’s stock.

Ameren Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:AEE opened at $97.97 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $95.21 and a 200 day moving average of $90.63. The company has a market cap of $26.44 billion, a PE ratio of 22.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a current ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. Ameren Co. has a 12-month low of $69.39 and a 12-month high of $104.10.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by ($0.06). Ameren had a net margin of 15.51% and a return on equity of 10.34%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.60 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Ameren Co. will post 4.93 EPS for the current year.

Ameren Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be issued a $0.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. This is a boost from Ameren’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.90%. Ameren’s payout ratio is currently 64.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Chonda J. Nwamu sold 5,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.37, for a total value of $557,535.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 43,344 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,393,781.28. The trade was a 11.26 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Shawn E. Schukar sold 4,743 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.79, for a total value of $492,275.97. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 57,486 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,966,471.94. This represents a 7.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 12,959 shares of company stock valued at $1,316,712. Corporate insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AEE has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Ameren from $86.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Ameren from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Evercore ISI upgraded Ameren from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $89.00 to $104.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Ameren from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Ameren currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $93.40.

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.