Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) Sees Significant Decrease in Short Interest

Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest during the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 4,470,000 shares, a drop of 19.9% from the March 15th total of 5,580,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,910,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.3 days. Currently, 1.7% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Ameren Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of AEE traded up $0.31 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $98.31. 1,747,644 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,585,972. The business has a 50 day moving average of $98.54 and a 200 day moving average of $93.42. The company has a market capitalization of $26.54 billion, a PE ratio of 22.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41. Ameren has a 1-year low of $69.39 and a 1-year 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 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 last year, the business earned $0.60 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Ameren will post 4.93 EPS for the current year.

Ameren Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th were paid a $0.71 dividend. This is an increase from Ameren’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.89%. Ameren’s dividend payout ratio is presently 64.25%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on AEE. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Ameren from $106.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Ameren from $102.00 to $101.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. 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 research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Ameren from $97.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Ameren from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $99.22.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Chonda J. Nwamu sold 5,500 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 owns 43,344 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,393,781.28. This represents a 11.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Shawn E. Schukar sold 4,743 shares of Ameren stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.79, for a total value of $492,275.97. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 57,486 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,966,471.94. This trade represents a 7.62 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 12,959 shares of company stock worth $1,316,712. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of AEE. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its stake in shares of Ameren by 1,732.4% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 3,068,505 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $273,527,000 after purchasing an additional 2,901,047 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its holdings in Ameren by 96.5% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,170,709 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $460,917,000 after buying an additional 2,539,129 shares in the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Ameren by 16.7% in the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 17,038,754 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,518,835,000 after acquiring an additional 2,439,811 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P. boosted its stake in shares of Ameren by 116.0% during the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 2,357,876 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $210,181,000 after acquiring an additional 1,266,051 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Millennium Management LLC grew its position in shares of Ameren by 76.7% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 2,134,288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $190,250,000 after acquiring an additional 926,126 shares during the period. 79.09% of the stock is currently 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.