Ameren (AEE)
Utilities · $28.2B market cap · SEC CIK 0001002910
fundamentals score out of 100
Next reports on Nov 3, 2026, with analysts expecting $2.32 in earnings per share.
The case for AEE
- Pays a 3.3% dividend while you wait.
- A PEG of 0.73: a P/E of 18.0× is low for EPS growing 25%.
- Moves less than the market (beta 0.45).
The case against
- Burned $775M of free cash in FY2025.
- Long-term debt of $18.2B would take 5 years of operating cash flow to repay.
- Current liabilities exceed current assets (ratio 0.53).
- The price trend is weak (37/100): +2.7% over a year, -6.3% over three months, 23% of the way up its 52-week range.
What the score is made of
Each factor is half a curve over reported figures and half a rank among the other Utilities companies (momentum is judged against fixed thresholds only), and the five are blended by weight. It describes the last filing and the current price. It is not a forecast.
| Valuewhat you pay for the earnings, sales, assets and cash | 48 |
|---|---|
| Growthhow fast revenue and earnings are moving, this year and over five | 67 |
| Profitabilityhow much of the revenue becomes profit, and how much of that is cash | 73 |
| Momentumhow the price has behaved lately | 37 |
| Stabilityhow violently it moves, what it owes and what it pays you | 67 |
- Each factor except momentum is half fixed thresholds, half rank among the 31 Utilities companies.
Key numbers
| Price / earnings | 18.0× |
|---|---|
| Price / book | 2.29× |
| Price / sales | 3.2× |
| Revenue growth (YoY) | +3.8% |
| EPS growth (YoY) | +24.8% |
| Gross margin | 43% |
| Operating margin | 25% |
| Net margin | 18% |
| Return on equity | 12% |
| Debt / equity | 1.59× |
| Current ratio | 0.53 |
| Dividend yield | 3.27% |
| Beta | 0.45 |
| 52-week range | $96.57 – $118.32 |
| Position in that range | 23% of the way up |
| 3-month return | -6.3% |
| 1-year return | +2.7% |
Five years of financials, as filed
Pulled from Ameren's XBRL filings on SEC EDGAR. Italic rows are derived from the rows above.
| FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $8.8B | $7.6B | $7.5B | $8.0B | $6.4B |
| Operating income | $2.0B | $1.5B | $1.6B | $1.5B | $1.3B |
| Operating cash flow | $3.4B | $2.8B | $2.6B | $2.3B | $1.7B |
| Capital expenditure | $4.1B | $4.3B | $3.6B | $3.4B | $3.5B |
| Total assets | $48.5B | $44.6B | $40.8B | $37.9B | $35.7B |
| Shareholder equity | $13.4B | $12.1B | $11.3B | $10.5B | $9.7B |
| Cash | $13.0M | $7.0M | $25.0M | $10.0M | $8.0M |
| Long-term debt | $18.2B | $17.3B | $15.1B | $13.7B | $12.6B |
| Free cash flow | -$775M | -$1.6B | -$1.0B | -$1.1B | -$1.8B |
| Operating margin | 23.0% | 19.9% | 20.8% | 19.0% | 20.8% |
| Diluted shares | 272M | 267M | 263M | 260M | 258M |
Share count is up 5.7% over 4 years. Mild issuance.
What Ameren says it does
Ameren, formed in 1997 and headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, is a public utility holding company whose primary assets are its equity interests in its subsidiaries. Ameren’s subsidiaries are separate, independent legal entities with separate businesses, assets, and liabilities. Dividends on Ameren’s common stock and the payment of expenses by Ameren depend on distributions made to it by its subsidiaries. Below is a summary description of Ameren’s principal subsidiaries – Ameren Missouri, Ameren Illinois, and ATXI. Ameren also has other subsidiaries that conduct other activities, such as providing shared services. A more detailed description can be found in Note 1 – Summary of Significant Accounting Policies under Part II, Item 8, of this report. • Ameren Missouri operates a rate-regulated electric generation, transmission, and distribution business and a rate-regulated natural gas distribution business in Missouri. •…
Risk factors AEE lists in its 10-K
- We are subject to extensive regulation of our businesses
- We are subject to business and financial risks related to the impact of climate-related legislation, regulation, and emission reduction initiatives
- We are subject to regulatory compliance and proceedings, which could result in increasing costs, regulatory penalties, and/or other sanctions
- Our electric generation and electric and natural gas transmission and distribution facilities, including natural gas storage facilities, are subject to operational risks
- Ameren Missouri’s ability to obtain an adequate supply of coal could limit operation of its coal-fired energy centers
- Ameren Missouri’s ownership and operation of a nuclear energy center creates business, financial, and waste disposal risks
- Realized energy demand from current and potential new customers may differ significantly from forecasts
- Energy conservation, energy efficiency, distributed generation, energy storage, technological advances, and other factors could reduce energy demand from our existing customers
- Ameren’s holding company structure could limit its ability to pay common stock dividends and to service its debt obligations
- We are subject to employee workforce factors that could adversely affect our operations
- Our operations are subject to acts of sabotage, terrorism, cyber attacks, and other disruptive acts
- Our businesses are dependent on our ability to access the capital and credit markets successfully. We might not have access to sufficient capital on reasonable terms, and in the amounts and at the times needed