Contrasting Ameren (AEE) & Its Competitors

Ameren (NYSE:AEE) is one of 105 public companies in the “Electric Utilities” industry, but how does it weigh in compared to its peers? We will compare Ameren to related businesses based on the strength of its risk, institutional ownership, valuation, analyst recommendations, earnings, profitability and dividends.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

79.1% of Ameren shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 60.0% of shares of all “Electric Utilities” companies are owned by institutional investors. 0.3% of Ameren shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 6.2% of shares of all “Electric Utilities” companies are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Ameren and its peers’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Ameren	17.86%	10.95%	3.00%
Ameren Competitors	14.17%	9.68%	3.20%

Volatility and Risk

Ameren has a beta of 0.42, suggesting that its share price is 58% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Ameren’s peers have a beta of -2.25, suggesting that their average share price is 325% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Ameren pays an annual dividend of $3.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.7%. Ameren pays out 52.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, “Electric Utilities” companies pay a dividend yield of 3.2% and pay out 64.5% of their earnings in the form of a dividend. Ameren has increased its dividend for 12 consecutive years.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Ameren and its peers, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Ameren	0	7	13	0	2.65
Ameren Competitors	1429	6555	5531	145	2.32

Ameren currently has a consensus target price of $117.43, suggesting a potential upside of 3.83%. As a group, “Electric Utilities” companies have a potential upside of 4.77%. Given Ameren’s peers higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Ameren has less favorable growth aspects than its peers.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Ameren and its peers revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Net Income	Price/Earnings Ratio
Ameren	$8.75 billion	$1.46 billion	19.91
Ameren Competitors	$14.86 billion	$1.54 billion	20.11

Ameren’s peers have higher revenue and earnings than Ameren. Ameren is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than its peers, indicating that it is currently more affordable than other companies in its industry.

Summary

Ameren peers beat Ameren on 8 of the 15 factors compared.

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. In addition, the company generates electricity through coal, nuclear, and natural gas, as well as renewable sources, such as hydroelectric, wind, methane gas, and solar. It serves residential, commercial, and industrial customers. The company was founded in 1881 and is headquartered in Saint Louis, Missouri.