USA Financial Formulas Acquires New Position in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE)

USA Financial Formulas bought a new position in shares of Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 9,234 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $823,000.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in AEE. Versor Investments LP bought a new stake in shares of Ameren during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,417,000. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Ameren by 59.8% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,631,580 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $230,158,000 after acquiring an additional 984,879 shares during the period. Magnetar Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Ameren in the second quarter worth about $2,632,000. Lindenwold Advisors INC purchased a new stake in shares of Ameren during the third quarter worth about $1,682,000. Finally, Sei Investments Co. raised its stake in Ameren by 79.1% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 246,030 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $17,496,000 after purchasing an additional 108,664 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.09% of the company’s stock.

Ameren Price Performance

Ameren stock opened at $91.04 on Thursday. Ameren Co. has a 1 year low of $67.03 and a 1 year high of $95.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.63. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $90.62 and its 200 day moving average price is $85.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.48.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Michael L. Moehn sold 6,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 in the company, valued at approximately $18,906,507.65. This represents a 3.07 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.36% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Ameren from $93.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Ameren from $86.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Barclays lifted their target price on Ameren from $77.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Ameren from $91.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Ameren to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Ameren presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.89.

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.