GAMMA Investing LLC Acquires 839 Shares of Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE)

GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) by 14.4% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 6,674 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 839 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC’s holdings in Ameren were worth $595,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of AEE. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Ameren by 51.7% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 1,064,877 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $93,134,000 after purchasing an additional 362,772 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Ameren by 6.1% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 331,801 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,019,000 after buying an additional 19,217 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in Ameren in the third quarter worth $74,000. Tudor Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ameren in the third quarter worth $463,000. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Ameren during the third quarter valued at $215,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.09% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Ameren

In related news, CFO Michael L. Moehn sold 6,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.15, for a total transaction of $598,975.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 205,171 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,906,507.65. The trade was a 3.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Ameren Stock Performance

Shares of AEE opened at $88.85 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $23.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.91, a PEG ratio of 2.95 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.41. Ameren Co. has a one year low of $67.03 and a one year high of $95.69. The business has a fifty day moving average of $90.37 and a 200 day moving average of $84.03.

Ameren Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th were given a dividend of $0.67 per share. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 11th. Ameren’s payout ratio is currently 63.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on AEE shares. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Ameren in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $97.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Ameren from $86.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Ameren from $91.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Barclays upped their price objective on Ameren from $77.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Ameren from $93.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $89.89.

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.