Franklin Resources Inc. Lowers Holdings in Ameren Corporation $AEE

Franklin Resources Inc. decreased its position in Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE) by 0.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,350,036 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 16,830 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Ameren were worth $245,283,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of AEE. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. purchased a new position in Ameren in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ameren by 6,040.0% during the second quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 307 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 302 shares during the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Ameren by 30.9% during the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 474 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ameren during the third quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Finally, WFA of San Diego LLC bought a new stake in shares of Ameren during the second quarter valued at approximately $58,000. 79.09% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ameren Stock Up 0.6%

NYSE AEE opened at $109.98 on Friday. Ameren Corporation has a 52 week low of $91.77 and a 52 week high of $113.64. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. The company has a market capitalization of $30.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.56. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $106.27 and its 200-day moving average price is $103.41.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The utilities provider reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.69 billion. Ameren had a return on equity of 10.69% and a net margin of 16.55%.The firm’s revenue was down 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.77 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Ameren Corporation will post 4.93 earnings per share for the current year.

Ameren Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th will be paid a $0.75 dividend. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. This is a boost from Ameren’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 10th. Ameren’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.07%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Ameren from $108.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Mizuho set a $117.00 price objective on Ameren in a report on Friday, February 13th. Barclays decreased their target price on Ameren from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Ameren from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $116.00 price target on shares of Ameren in a report on Friday, February 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $113.30.

Insider Activity at Ameren

In other news, insider Michael L. Moehn sold 6,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.60, for a total transaction of $673,400.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 193,076 shares in the company, valued at $20,002,673.60. This trade represents a 3.26% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.42% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Ameren

Ameren Corporation (NYSE: AEE) is an integrated energy company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, that provides electric and natural gas delivery and related services in portions of Missouri and Illinois. The company operates regulated utility businesses that serve a broad mix of residential, commercial and industrial customers, and it participates in wholesale energy markets and transmission operations that support reliable service across its service territories.

Ameren’s core activities include generation, transmission and distribution of electricity, distribution of natural gas, and the provision of customer energy solutions such as demand-side management and energy efficiency programs.