Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund Has $1.63 Million Stock Position in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE)

Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund increased its holdings in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) by 1.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 22,857 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund’s holdings in Ameren were worth $1,625,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings 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 last quarter. First Command Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in Ameren during the second quarter worth about $26,000. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. grew its position in Ameren by 117.6% in the 1st quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 370 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Ameren in the 1st quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Pathway Financial Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Ameren during the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Institutional investors own 79.09% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Chonda J. Nwamu sold 1,610 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.94, for a total value of $131,923.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,432 shares in the company, valued at $3,640,758.08. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Ameren Price Performance

AEE opened at $83.16 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $78.36 and a 200-day moving average price of $74.54. Ameren Co. has a twelve month low of $67.03 and a twelve month high of $84.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.40. The company has a market capitalization of $22.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.12, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.45.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.04. Ameren had a net margin of 16.28% and a return on equity of 10.20%. The business had revenue of $1.69 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.87 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.90 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Ameren Co. will post 4.61 EPS for the current year.

Ameren Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.67 per share. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 11th. Ameren’s payout ratio is presently 61.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on AEE. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Ameren from $74.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Bank of America upped their price objective on Ameren from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. UBS Group initiated coverage on Ameren in a research note on Friday, July 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $87.00 target price on the stock. Barclays upgraded shares of Ameren from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $73.00 to $77.00 in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Ameren from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ameren has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $81.00.

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.