Ameren (NYSE:AEE) Announces Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.04 EPS

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The utilities provider reported $1.87 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.91 by ($0.04), reports. The firm had revenue of $2.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.21 billion. Ameren had a net margin of 15.52% and a return on equity of 10.17%.

Ameren Stock Performance

AEE opened at $86.55 on Friday. Ameren has a 12-month low of $67.03 and a 12-month high of $89.54. The company has a market cap of $23.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.36, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The company’s 50 day moving average is $86.10 and its 200 day moving average is $78.85.

Ameren Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be paid a $0.67 dividend. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 11th. Ameren’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ameren

In other news, EVP Chonda J. Nwamu sold 1,610 shares of Ameren stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.94, for a total transaction of $131,923.40. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 44,432 shares in the company, valued at $3,640,758.08. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.42% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in Ameren by 115.3% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 366 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 196 shares during the period. First Command Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of Ameren in the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ameren in the first quarter worth $31,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Ameren by 108.1% during the 1st quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 435 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ameren by 227.3% during the 1st quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 455 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 316 shares in the last quarter. 79.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on AEE. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Ameren from $81.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Ameren in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $97.00 price objective on the stock. Argus raised Ameren to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 19th. Barclays boosted their price target on Ameren from $77.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Mizuho raised Ameren from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $82.00 to $89.00 in a research report on Monday, September 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $87.80.

About Ameren

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.