Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the nine brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $63.39.

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Alliant Energy from $52.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Scotiabank downgraded Alliant Energy from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $64.00 to $67.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays decreased their price target on Alliant Energy from $61.00 to $59.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Alliant Energy from $65.00 to $61.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Alliant Energy from $66.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 4th.

Alliant Energy Stock Down 0.5 %

LNT stock opened at $58.59 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $60.06 and its 200-day moving average is $59.09. Alliant Energy has a twelve month low of $46.80 and a twelve month high of $64.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.03 billion, a PE ratio of 22.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.08 billion. Alliant Energy had a net margin of 16.66% and a return on equity of 10.56%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.05 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Alliant Energy will post 3.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alliant Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a dividend of $0.5075 per share. This represents a $2.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 31st. This is a positive change from Alliant Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Alliant Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 74.42%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alliant Energy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of LNT. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its position in shares of Alliant Energy by 7.2% in the third quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 2,605 shares of the company’s stock valued at $158,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. RDA Financial Network grew its holdings in Alliant Energy by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. RDA Financial Network now owns 7,990 shares of the company’s stock valued at $473,000 after buying an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. Empirical Finance LLC increased its position in shares of Alliant Energy by 2.2% during the third quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 8,637 shares of the company’s stock valued at $524,000 after buying an additional 189 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 15,937 shares of the company’s stock worth $942,000 after buying an additional 237 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of Alliant Energy by 4.0% in the third quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 6,433 shares of the company’s stock valued at $390,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.90% of the company’s stock.

About Alliant Energy

Alliant Energy Corporation operates as a utility holding company that provides regulated electricity and natural gas services in the United States. It operates in three segments: Utility Electric Operations, Utility Gas Operations, and Utility Other. The company, through its subsidiary, Interstate Power and Light Company (IPL), primarily generates and distributes electricity, and distributes and transports natural gas to retail customers in Iowa; sells electricity to wholesale customers in Minnesota, Illinois, and Iowa; and generates and distributes steam in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.