Horizon Investments LLC Acquires 17,336 Shares of Ameren Corporation $AEE

Horizon Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE) by 193.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 26,312 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 17,336 shares during the quarter. Horizon Investments LLC’s holdings in Ameren were worth $2,628,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its stake in Ameren by 285.5% in the third quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 266 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the last quarter. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. bought a new stake in Ameren in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Ameren by 6,040.0% during the second quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 307 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares during the period. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its holdings in shares of Ameren by 6,080.0% in the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 309 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wiser Advisor Group LLC bought a new stake in Ameren during the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.09% of the company’s stock.

Ameren Price Performance

Shares of AEE stock opened at $112.47 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $111.07 and its 200 day moving average is $105.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. The stock has a market cap of $31.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.02, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.50. Ameren Corporation has a twelve month low of $93.27 and a twelve month high of $115.58.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The utilities provider reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.01. Ameren had a return on equity of 10.69% and a net margin of 16.55%.The company had revenue of $1.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.69 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.77 earnings per share. Ameren’s revenue was down 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Ameren Corporation will post 5.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ameren Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th were paid a $0.75 dividend. This is an increase from Ameren’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 10th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Ameren’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 56.07%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AEE has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Mizuho set a $117.00 price target on shares of Ameren in a report on Friday, February 13th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Ameren from $112.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Ameren from $108.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Ameren from $119.00 to $117.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Ameren from $104.00 to $116.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $117.31.

Ameren Profile

Ameren Corporation (NYSE: AEE) is an integrated energy company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, that provides electric and natural gas delivery and related services in portions of Missouri and Illinois. The company operates regulated utility businesses that serve a broad mix of residential, commercial and industrial customers, and it participates in wholesale energy markets and transmission operations that support reliable service across its service territories.

Ameren’s core activities include generation, transmission and distribution of electricity, distribution of natural gas, and the provision of customer energy solutions such as demand-side management and energy efficiency programs.