Ameren Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:AEE)

Ameren Corporation (NYSE:AEE) was the target of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Traders purchased 2,984 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 2,268% compared to the average daily volume of 126 call options.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Michael L. Moehn sold 6,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.60, for a total value of $673,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 193,076 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,002,673.60. This trade represents a 3.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.42% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Ameren

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd raised its stake in shares of Ameren by 285.5% in the 3rd quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 266 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 197 shares during the period. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Ameren during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Ameren during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Ameren by 6,040.0% in the 2nd quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 307 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 302 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its holdings in Ameren by 6,080.0% in the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 309 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 304 shares during the last quarter. 79.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ameren Trading Up 0.9%

AEE opened at $110.90 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.65 billion, a PE ratio of 20.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.52. Ameren has a one year low of $91.77 and a one year high of $113.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 0.66. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $108.48 and its 200 day moving average price is $104.35.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The utilities provider reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.69 billion. Ameren had a return on equity of 10.69% and a net margin of 16.55%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.77 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Ameren will post 4.93 EPS for the current year.

Ameren Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 10th were given a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 10th. This is an increase from Ameren’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. Ameren’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.07%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

AEE has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Ameren from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 21st. Argus lifted their price target on Ameren from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Ameren from $111.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 13th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Ameren from $112.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, February 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $116.00 price objective on shares of Ameren in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ameren presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $113.45.

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.