CWA Asset Management Group LLC Makes New Investment in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE)

CWA Asset Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor acquired 4,661 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $408,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Droms Strauss Advisors Inc. MO ADV bought a new position in shares of Ameren in the third quarter worth $225,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Ameren by 6.1% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 331,801 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,019,000 after buying an additional 19,217 shares in the last quarter. Prudent Investors Network Inc. bought a new position in Ameren in the 3rd quarter worth about $211,000. NorthRock Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Ameren by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC now owns 3,107 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $272,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Ameren by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 45,691 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,996,000 after acquiring an additional 2,322 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have issued reports on AEE. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Ameren in a research report on Friday, July 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $87.00 target price for the company. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Ameren from $77.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Argus upgraded Ameren to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Ameren from $91.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Mizuho raised Ameren from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $82.00 to $89.00 in a report on Monday, September 16th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $87.80.

Insider Buying and Selling at Ameren

In related news, EVP Chonda J. Nwamu sold 1,610 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.94, for a total value of $131,923.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 44,432 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,640,758.08. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.42% of the company’s stock.

Ameren Price Performance

Shares of Ameren stock opened at $92.30 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.45. Ameren Co. has a one year low of $67.03 and a one year high of $92.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $86.35 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $79.08.

Ameren Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.67 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 11th. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.90%. Ameren’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.