AEE vs. FE: Ameren vs. FirstEnergy Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do Ameren (AEE) and FirstEnergy (FE) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Ameren (AEE) and FirstEnergy (FE) both fall under the Utilities industry group, but AEE is classified in Multi-Utilities while FE is classified in Electric Utilities.

Company profile comparison for Ameren (AEE) and FirstEnergy (FE)
Profile Item	AEE	FE
Name	Ameren Corporation	FirstEnergy Corp.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Utilities	Utilities
GICS Industry Group	Utilities	Utilities
GICS Industry	Multi-Utilities	Electric Utilities
GICS Sub-Industry	Multi-Utilities	Electric Utilities
Market Capitalization	31.24 billion USD	26.88 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	January 2, 1998	November 10, 1997
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

AEE

GSPC

Ameren (AEE) vs. FirstEnergy (FE), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Ameren (AEE) and FirstEnergy (FE). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Ameren (AEE) and FirstEnergy (FE). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Ameren (AEE) and FirstEnergy (FE)
Metric	AEE	FE
Total Return (1Y)	11.92%	5.62%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	17.94%	14.20%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	9.71%	8.32%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

AEE

GSPC

Ameren (AEE) vs. FirstEnergy (FE), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Ameren (AEE) and FirstEnergy (FE). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Ameren (AEE) and FirstEnergy (FE)
Metric	AEE	FE
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	17.76%	16.31%
Beta (5Y)	0.40	0.39
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-27.46%	-28.59%
Avg. Volume (3M)	1.74M	4.29M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

AEE and FE are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Ameren (AEE) and FirstEnergy (FE)
Metric	AEE	FE
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.43	0.08
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.62	0.11

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both Ameren (AEE) at 11.78% and FirstEnergy (FE) at 10.04% land near their industries’ usual ROE ranges, so capital efficiency looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

AEE

Utilities industry group

11.78%

Max: 17.99%
Q3: 12.01%
AEE: 11.78%
Median: 9.44%
Q1: 7.56%
Min: 2.17%

FE

Utilities industry group

10.04%

Max: 17.99%
Q3: 12.01%
FE: 10.04%
Median: 9.44%
Q1: 7.56%
Min: 2.17%

Ameren (AEE) vs. FirstEnergy (FE): A comparison of their ROE against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Ameren (AEE) at 18.59% keeps a top-quartile share of each sales dollar as profit, while FirstEnergy (FE) at 7.49% keeps a bottom-quartile share.

AEE

Utilities industry group

18.59%

Max: 28.78%
AEE: 18.59%
Q3: 17.30%
Median: 12.73%
Q1: 9.18%
Min: -0.20%

FE

Utilities industry group

7.49%

Max: 28.78%
Q3: 17.30%
Median: 12.73%
Q1: 9.18%
FE: 7.49%
Min: -0.20%

Ameren (AEE) vs. FirstEnergy (FE): A comparison of their net margin against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Ameren (AEE) at 31.23% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of FirstEnergy (FE) at 21.24%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

AEE

Utilities industry group

31.23%

Max: 53.83%
AEE: 31.23%
Q3: 31.12%
Median: 23.62%
Q1: 15.45%
Min: -4.90%

FE

Utilities industry group

21.24%

Max: 53.83%
Q3: 31.12%
Median: 23.62%
FE: 21.24%
Q1: 15.45%
Min: -4.90%

Ameren (AEE) vs. FirstEnergy (FE): A comparison of their operating margin against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Ameren (AEE) and FirstEnergy (FE)
Metric	AEE	FE
ROE (TTM)	11.78%	10.04%
ROA (TTM)	3.12%	3.66%
Net Margin (TTM)	18.59%	7.49%
Operating Margin (TTM)	31.23%	21.24%
Gross Margin (TTM)	52.47%	69.63%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Ameren (AEE) at 15.43% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while FirstEnergy (FE) at 12.01% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for AEE.

Ameren (AEE) vs. FirstEnergy (FE): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Ameren (AEE) at 21.04% sits in the top EPS growth quartile, while FirstEnergy (FE) at 3.53% is closer to the peer norm — faster per-share earnings growth for AEE.

Ameren (AEE) vs. FirstEnergy (FE): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Ameren (AEE) and FirstEnergy (FE)
Metric	AEE	FE
Revenue Growth (YoY)	15.43%	12.01%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	3.41%	6.59%
EPS Growth (YoY)	21.04%	3.53%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	8.92%	35.34%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Ameren (AEE) at 0.74 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while FirstEnergy (FE) at 0.38 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for FE.

AEE

Utilities industry group

0.74

Max: 1.90
Q3: 1.17
Median: 0.88
AEE: 0.74
Q1: 0.66
Min: 0.29

FE

Utilities industry group

0.38

Max: 1.90
Q3: 1.17
Median: 0.88
Q1: 0.66
FE: 0.38
Min: 0.29

Ameren (AEE) vs. FirstEnergy (FE): A comparison of their current ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Ameren (AEE) at 1.57 carries an industry-typical debt-to-equity mix, while FirstEnergy (FE) at 2.07 uses more debt funding than most peers.

AEE

Utilities industry group

1.57

Max: 2.63
Q3: 1.77
AEE: 1.57
Median: 1.35
Q1: 0.84
Min: 0.00

FE

Utilities industry group

2.07

Max: 2.63
FE: 2.07
Q3: 1.77
Median: 1.35
Q1: 0.84
Min: 0.00

Ameren (AEE) vs. FirstEnergy (FE): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Ameren (AEE) and FirstEnergy (FE)
Metric	AEE	FE
Current Ratio (MRQ)	0.74	0.38
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	1.57	2.07
Net Debt / EBITDA	5.55	5.85

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

FirstEnergy (FE) at 3.90% offers top-quartile income, while Ameren (AEE) at 0.63% sits in the bottom quartile — a wide gap in cash returned to shareholders.

AEE

Utilities industry group

0.63%

Max: 6.66%
Q3: 3.58%
Median: 2.85%
Q1: 0.66%
AEE: 0.63%
Min: 0.00%

FE

Utilities industry group

3.90%

Max: 6.66%
FE: 3.90%
Q3: 3.58%
Median: 2.85%
Q1: 0.66%
Min: 0.00%

Ameren (AEE) vs. FirstEnergy (FE): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Ameren (AEE) at 51.48% pays out a band-typical share of earnings, while FirstEnergy (FE) at 87.92% distributes more than its industry norm — less retained, thinner cover.

AEE

Utilities industry group

51.48%

Max: 113.04%
Q3: 68.72%
Median: 56.38%
AEE: 51.48%
Q1: 32.38%
Min: 0.00%

FE

Utilities industry group

87.92%

Max: 113.04%
FE: 87.92%
Q3: 68.72%
Median: 56.38%
Q1: 32.38%
Min: 0.00%

Ameren (AEE) vs. FirstEnergy (FE): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Ameren (AEE) and FirstEnergy (FE)
Metric	AEE	FE
Dividend Yield (TTM)	0.63%	3.90%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	51.48%	87.92%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both Ameren (AEE) at 19.63 and FirstEnergy (FE) at 22.43 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

AEE

Utilities industry group

19.63

Max: 31.22
Q3: 23.30
Median: 19.64
AEE: 19.63
Q1: 15.17
Min: 3.34

FE

Utilities industry group

22.43

Max: 31.22
Q3: 23.30
FE: 22.43
Median: 19.64
Q1: 15.17
Min: 3.34

Ameren (AEE) vs. FirstEnergy (FE): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

FirstEnergy (FE) at 1.68 is priced about in line with its industry on P/S ratio, while Ameren (AEE) at 3.63 sits in the pricier quartile — AEE costs more per dollar of sales.

AEE

Utilities industry group

3.63

Max: 6.35
AEE: 3.63
Q3: 3.63
Median: 2.63
Q1: 1.52
Min: 0.00

FE

Utilities industry group

1.68

Max: 6.35
Q3: 3.63
Median: 2.63
FE: 1.68
Q1: 1.52
Min: 0.00

Ameren (AEE) vs. FirstEnergy (FE): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

On P/B ratio, both Ameren (AEE) at 2.20 and FirstEnergy (FE) at 2.07 are valued close to their industries’ norm against book — neither stands out from peers.

AEE

Utilities industry group

2.20

Max: 3.12
Q3: 2.21
AEE: 2.20
Median: 1.83
Q1: 1.46
Min: 0.34

FE

Utilities industry group

2.07

Max: 3.12
Q3: 2.21
FE: 2.07
Median: 1.83
Q1: 1.46
Min: 0.34

Ameren (AEE) vs. FirstEnergy (FE): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Ameren (AEE) and FirstEnergy (FE)
Metric	AEE	FE
P/E Ratio (TTM)	19.63	22.43
P/S Ratio (TTM)	3.63	1.68
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	2.20	2.07
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	-8.06%	-9.48%