Zacks Research Has Negative Outlook for Ameren Q1 Earnings

Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) – Equities researchers at Zacks Research cut their Q1 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Ameren in a report issued on Wednesday, March 26th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now expects that the utilities provider will earn $1.15 per share for the quarter, down from their prior forecast of $1.16. The consensus estimate for Ameren’s current full-year earnings is $4.93 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Ameren’s Q3 2025 earnings at $1.68 EPS.

AEE has been the subject of several other research reports. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Ameren from $106.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Ameren from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Ameren from $97.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Ameren from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised Ameren from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $89.00 to $104.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ameren presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $96.70.

Ameren Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AEE opened at $99.71 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.48. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $97.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $92.08. Ameren has a 52-week low of $69.39 and a 52-week high of $104.10. 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 (NYSE:AEE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 firm posted $0.60 EPS.

Ameren Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.71 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.85%. This is an increase from Ameren’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. Ameren’s payout ratio is currently 64.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ameren

In other news, EVP Chonda J. Nwamu sold 5,500 shares of Ameren stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $101.37, for a total value of $557,535.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 43,344 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,393,781.28. The trade was a 11.26 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Craig S. Ivey sold 2,716 shares of Ameren stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.27, for a total value of $266,901.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 14,495 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,424,423.65. The trade was a 15.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 12,959 shares of company stock valued at $1,316,712 in the last 90 days. 0.42% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ameren

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Ameren in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ameren during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of Ameren in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Ameren in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Optiver Holding B.V. boosted its stake in Ameren by 78.7% during the 4th quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 470 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 207 shares during the last quarter. 79.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.