Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) Receives $63.25 Consensus PT from Analysts

Shares of Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the ten ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $63.55.

A number of equities research analysts have commented on LNT shares. Scotiabank cut Alliant Energy from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $64.00 to $67.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $57.00 price objective on shares of Alliant Energy in a research report on Monday, February 24th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Alliant Energy from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Alliant Energy from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday.

Alliant Energy Trading Down 0.8 %

NASDAQ LNT opened at $63.05 on Friday. Alliant Energy has a 52 week low of $47.23 and a 52 week high of $66.54. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $61.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $60.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The firm has a market cap of $16.18 billion, a PE ratio of 23.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.54.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $976.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.14 billion. Alliant Energy had a return on equity of 11.39% and a net margin of 17.33%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Alliant Energy will post 3.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alliant Energy Increases Dividend

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alliant Energy

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Alliant Energy by 31.0% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 64,387 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,808,000 after purchasing an additional 15,232 shares during the period. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Alliant Energy by 10.3% during the fourth quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,902 shares of the company’s stock worth $586,000 after buying an additional 927 shares in the last quarter. LifeWealth Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Alliant Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $257,000. Columbia River Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Alliant Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $456,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in shares of Alliant Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $5,206,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.90% of the company’s stock.

Alliant Energy Company Profile

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.