Ameren (NYSE:AEE) Given New $109.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) had its price target increased by Morgan Stanley from $108.00 to $109.00 in a report released on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “equal weight” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target points to a potential upside of 2.33% from the company’s current price.

AEE has been the topic of several other reports. KeyCorp raised their price target on Ameren from $116.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Ameren from $126.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Barclays decreased their target price on Ameren from $117.00 to $109.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Truist Financial lowered their target price on Ameren from $120.00 to $116.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 14th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Ameren from $119.00 to $113.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Ameren presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $116.77.

Ameren Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE AEE traded up $0.29 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $106.52. 424,834 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,726,640. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a current ratio of 0.53 and a quick ratio of 0.37. The company’s 50 day moving average is $104.42 and its 200 day moving average is $108.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.75, a P/E/G ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.44. Ameren has a one year low of $96.57 and a one year high of $118.32.

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $2.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.27 billion. Ameren had a net margin of 17.86% and a return on equity of 10.95%. Ameren’s revenue was down 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.01 EPS. Ameren has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.250-5.450 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Ameren will post 5.40 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Theresa A. Shaw sold 325 shares of Ameren stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.93, for a total transaction of $35,402.25. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 32,340 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,522,796.20. This trade represents a 0.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Rafael Flores sold 248 shares of Ameren stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.53, for a total value of $26,171.44. Following the sale, the director directly owned 13,888 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,465,600.64. This trade represents a 1.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 7,073 shares of company stock valued at $769,814. Insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Ameren

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Ameren during the second quarter worth $27,000. Continuum Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Ameren during the second quarter valued at $30,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its holdings in Ameren by 74.9% in the first quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 292 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Aberdeen Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Ameren in the second quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Ascentis Independent Advisors bought a new position in Ameren in the first quarter valued at about $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.09% of the company’s stock.

Ameren Company Profile

Ameren Corporation is a regulated electric and natural gas utility holding company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Through its operating companies, Ameren Missouri and Ameren Illinois, the company provides electric generation, transmission and distribution services, as well as natural gas distribution.

Ameren serves approximately 2.5 million electric customers and more than 900,000 natural gas customers across Missouri and Illinois. Its operations include a diverse generation portfolio and infrastructure designed to deliver reliable energy to residential, commercial and industrial customers, while supporting the transition toward cleaner energy resources.

Ameren was formed in 1997 through the merger of Union Electric Company and CIPSCO Inc The company is led by Martin J.