Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) Shares Acquired by Verition Fund Management LLC

Verition Fund Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) by 484.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 637,241 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 528,270 shares during the quarter. Ameren comprises approximately 0.3% of Verition Fund Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. Verition Fund Management LLC’s holdings in Ameren were worth $55,733,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in Ameren by 392.0% during the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 19,434 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,382,000 after acquiring an additional 15,484 shares during the period. Versor Investments LP purchased a new position in shares of Ameren in the third quarter worth about $1,417,000. Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ameren during the second quarter worth about $2,632,000. Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in Ameren by 137.2% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 100,154 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $7,407,000 after buying an additional 57,923 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lindenwold Advisors INC acquired a new position in Ameren in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,682,000. 79.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Michael L. Moehn sold 6,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.15, for a total value of $598,975.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 205,171 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,906,507.65. This trade represents a 3.07 % decrease in their position. 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.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on AEE. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Ameren from $91.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Mizuho upgraded shares of Ameren from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $82.00 to $89.00 in a research report on Monday, September 16th. Argus raised Ameren to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Bank of America lifted 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Ameren in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $97.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $87.90.

Ameren Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of AEE stock opened at $94.98 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $88.81 and a 200-day simple moving average of $80.81. Ameren Co. has a 1-year low of $67.03 and a 1-year high of $95.69. The company has a market cap of $25.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.35, a PEG ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.45. 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 Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.67 per share. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.82%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 11th. Ameren’s payout ratio is 63.06%.

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.