KBC Group NV Acquires 4,685 Shares of Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE)

KBC Group NV increased its holdings in shares of Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) by 26.1% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 22,630 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,685 shares during the period. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Ameren were worth $2,017,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of AEE. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its stake in Ameren by 36.3% in the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 14,619 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,039,000 after buying an additional 3,897 shares in the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ameren during the second quarter worth about $2,228,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its holdings in shares of Ameren by 11.2% during the third quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 2,237 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $196,000 after buying an additional 226 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank raised its position in Ameren by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 54,353 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,754,000 after buying an additional 3,537 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC boosted its position in Ameren by 19.8% during the 3rd quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 3,684 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $322,000 after acquiring an additional 609 shares during the last quarter. 79.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Ameren Stock Up 0.0 %

AEE opened at $94.15 on Friday. Ameren Co. has a 1-year low of $67.03 and a 1-year high of $96.74. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $91.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $86.92. The company has a current ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The stock has a market cap of $25.13 billion, a PE ratio of 22.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.48.

Insider Activity at Ameren

In related news, CFO Michael L. Moehn sold 6,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.15, for a total value of $598,975.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 205,171 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,906,507.65. This represents a 3.07 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.42% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

AEE has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Ameren from $86.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Ameren from $93.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Ameren from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $89.00 to $104.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, Barclays downgraded Ameren from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $88.00 to $95.00 in a research report on Monday, January 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ameren presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $92.00.

Ameren Profile

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.