Maple Brown Abbott Ltd Decreases Stock Position in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE)

Maple Brown Abbott Ltd lowered its position in Ameren Co. (NYSE:AEE) by 22.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,270,240 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 361,690 shares during the period. Ameren comprises approximately 13.8% of Maple Brown Abbott Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its largest position. Maple Brown Abbott Ltd owned 0.48% of Ameren worth $113,229,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its holdings in shares of Ameren by 36.3% in the second quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 14,619 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,039,000 after buying an additional 3,897 shares in the last quarter. MBB Public Markets I LLC purchased a new stake in Ameren in the 2nd quarter worth $1,342,000. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its holdings in shares of Ameren by 7.9% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 631,606 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $44,914,000 after purchasing an additional 46,118 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning grew its position in shares of Ameren by 9.6% during the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 76,803 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,461,000 after purchasing an additional 6,757 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP grew its position in shares of Ameren by 595.5% during the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,530 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $109,000 after purchasing an additional 1,310 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.09% of the company’s stock.

Ameren Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE:AEE opened at $94.20 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.14 billion, a PE ratio of 22.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.48. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $91.21 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $86.29. Ameren Co. has a 1 year low of $67.03 and a 1 year high of $96.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 0.63 and a quick ratio of 0.41.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays raised their price target on Ameren from $77.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. 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 report on Friday, December 13th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Ameren from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $89.00 to $104.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Ameren from $93.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Ameren has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $91.30.

Insider Activity at Ameren

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

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.