Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) Shares Sold by Parkside Financial Bank & Trust

Parkside Financial Bank & Trust trimmed its position in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 9,872 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 125 shares during the quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust’s holdings in Ameren were worth $880,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Ameren by 50.1% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 17,564 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,519,000 after acquiring an additional 5,865 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Ameren by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 15,832 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,385,000 after acquiring an additional 857 shares during the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its position in shares of Ameren by 6.0% during the 3rd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 36,880 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,224,000 after acquiring an additional 2,100 shares during the last quarter. abrdn plc lifted its position in shares of Ameren by 18.1% during the 3rd quarter. abrdn plc now owns 112,911 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $9,838,000 after acquiring an additional 17,277 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mutual Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Ameren by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC now owns 20,994 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,869,000 after acquiring an additional 475 shares during the last quarter. 79.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Craig S. Ivey sold 2,716 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.27, for a total transaction of $266,901.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 14,495 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,424,423.65. The trade was a 15.78 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.36% of the company’s stock.

Ameren Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AEE opened at $99.69 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $93.68 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $89.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.44. Ameren Co. has a one year low of $69.39 and a one year high of $100.61. The company has a market capitalization of $26.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.49.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.77 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 previous year, the company posted $0.60 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Ameren Co. will post 4.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Ameren Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be given a $0.71 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.85%. This is a boost from Ameren’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Ameren’s payout ratio is currently 60.63%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on AEE shares. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Ameren from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Barclays lowered Ameren from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $88.00 to $95.00 in a report on Monday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Ameren from $86.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded Ameren from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the company from $89.00 to $104.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 21st. One 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Ameren currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $92.70.

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.