HighTower Advisors LLC Sells 1,384 Shares of Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT)

HighTower Advisors LLC lessened its position in Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) by 3.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 36,002 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,384 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Alliant Energy were worth $2,129,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. RDA Financial Network boosted its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. RDA Financial Network now owns 7,990 shares of the company’s stock worth $473,000 after buying an additional 184 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy by 8.2% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 2,509 shares of the company’s stock worth $148,000 after buying an additional 191 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 15,937 shares of the company’s stock worth $942,000 after buying an additional 237 shares during the period. City State Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. City State Bank now owns 71,547 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,231,000 after buying an additional 257 shares during the period. Finally, United Asset Strategies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc. now owns 59,752 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,534,000 after buying an additional 280 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LNT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Alliant Energy from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Scotiabank downgraded shares of Alliant Energy from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $64.00 to $67.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $57.00 target price on shares of Alliant Energy in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Alliant Energy from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Alliant Energy presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $63.55.

Alliant Energy Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LNT opened at $63.05 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $61.32 and a 200-day moving average of $60.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.18 billion, a PE ratio of 23.44, a PEG ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. Alliant Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $47.23 and a 12 month high of $66.54.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $976.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.14 billion. Alliant Energy had a net margin of 17.33% and a return on equity of 11.39%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Alliant Energy Co. will post 3.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alliant Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st were given a $0.5075 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. This is a boost from Alliant Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $2.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.22%. Alliant Energy’s payout ratio is presently 75.46%.

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.