Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Trims Stake in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE)

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. lowered its holdings in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) by 6.8% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,598 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 920 shares during the quarter. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Ameren were worth $1,102,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in AEE. Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Ameren by 4.6% in the first quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 5,308 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $393,000 after buying an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Ameren by 5.2% in the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 311,729 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $23,055,000 after buying an additional 15,269 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Ameren by 21.8% during the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 327,284 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $24,206,000 after purchasing an additional 58,557 shares in the last quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC grew its stake in Ameren by 8.6% during the 1st quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC now owns 18,428 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,363,000 after purchasing an additional 1,467 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blair William & Co. IL grew its stake in Ameren by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 4,731 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $350,000 after purchasing an additional 252 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.09% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Argus raised Ameren to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Ameren in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $97.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Ameren from $91.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Ameren from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Ameren from $81.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ameren has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $87.80.

Ameren Stock Down 1.8 %

AEE opened at $89.73 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.63 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $86.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $79.42. Ameren Co. has a 52 week low of $67.03 and a 52 week high of $92.77. The company has a market cap of $23.95 billion, a PE ratio of 21.11, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.45.

Ameren Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be given a dividend of $0.67 per share. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.99%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 11th. Ameren’s payout ratio is 63.06%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Chonda J. Nwamu sold 1,610 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.94, for a total value of $131,923.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 44,432 shares in the company, valued at $3,640,758.08. This represents a 3.50 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.