Ameren (NYSE:AEE) Price Target Raised to $113.00

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) had its price objective upped by equities researchers at UBS Group from $106.00 to $113.00 in a report issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. UBS Group’s target price suggests a potential upside of 14.34% from the company’s previous close.

Other equities analysts have also issued reports about the stock. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of Ameren from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Ameren from $97.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday. Evercore ISI raised shares of Ameren from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $89.00 to $104.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on Ameren from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four 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 currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $96.70.

Ameren Stock Performance

NYSE:AEE traded down $1.14 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $98.83. 526,958 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,426,328. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.34, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.48. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $96.71 and its 200-day moving average price is $91.34. Ameren has a 52-week low of $69.39 and a 52-week high of $104.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 0.66 and a quick ratio of 0.44.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) last issued 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 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Ameren will post 4.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Ameren

In other news, insider Shawn E. Schukar sold 4,743 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.79, for a total transaction of $492,275.97. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 57,486 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,966,471.94. The trade was a 7.62 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Craig S. Ivey sold 2,716 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owns 14,495 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,424,423.65. The trade was a 15.78 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 12,959 shares of company stock valued at $1,316,712. Insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Ameren by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 15,963 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,423,000 after acquiring an additional 131 shares during the period. Siemens Fonds Invest GmbH acquired a new position in shares of Ameren during the 4th quarter valued at $10,901,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in Ameren during the fourth quarter worth about $6,729,000. Armis Advisers LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ameren in the 4th quarter worth approximately $239,000. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its position in shares of Ameren by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 25,055 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,233,000 after purchasing an additional 346 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.09% of the company’s stock.

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.