Victory Capital Management Inc. Purchases 3,753 Shares of Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE)

Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) by 2.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 178,333 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,753 shares during the quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned 0.07% of Ameren worth $12,901,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. First Command Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in Ameren during the 3rd quarter worth about $40,000. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its position in Ameren by 124.5% during the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 624 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 346 shares during the period. CNB Bank lifted its position in Ameren by 46.7% during the 3rd quarter. CNB Bank now owns 641 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Ameren by 93.7% during the 3rd quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 703 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 340 shares during the period. Finally, Sandy Spring Bank lifted its position in Ameren by 96.7% during the 4th quarter. Sandy Spring Bank now owns 773 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 380 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.09% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Ameren

In other Ameren news, CEO Martin J. Lyons sold 7,270 shares of Ameren stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.70, for a total transaction of $513,989.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 246,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,422,883.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, EVP Mark C. Lindgren sold 1,630 shares of Ameren stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.70, for a total transaction of $115,241.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 47,883 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,385,328.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Martin J. Lyons sold 7,270 shares of Ameren stock in a transaction on Monday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.70, for a total value of $513,989.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 246,434 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,422,883.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.42% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Ameren Price Performance

Shares of AEE opened at $74.40 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.44. Ameren Co. has a twelve month low of $67.03 and a twelve month high of $89.94. The company has a 50 day moving average of $73.06 and a 200-day moving average of $73.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 9th. The utilities provider reported $0.98 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.06 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $1.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.19 billion. Ameren had a return on equity of 10.20% and a net margin of 15.84%. Ameren’s revenue was down 11.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.00 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Ameren Co. will post 4.59 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Ameren Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 12th will be paid a $0.67 dividend. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.60%. Ameren’s dividend payout ratio is presently 61.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on AEE shares. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Ameren from $76.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Ameren from $74.00 to $73.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Ameren in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $73.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Ameren from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Ameren from $77.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $79.90.

Ameren 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.