Analysts Set Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) PT at $63.06

Shares of Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) have received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the nine research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $63.39.

Several research analysts recently commented on LNT shares. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Alliant Energy from $65.00 to $61.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Alliant Energy from $66.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Mizuho boosted their price target on Alliant Energy from $52.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Alliant Energy from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on Alliant Energy from $61.00 to $59.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 6th.

Alliant Energy Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ LNT opened at $59.57 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $15.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.09, a PEG ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.59. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $60.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $57.41. Alliant Energy has a 1 year low of $46.80 and a 1 year high of $64.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.72.

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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.05. Alliant Energy had a return on equity of 10.56% and a net margin of 16.66%. The company had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.08 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.05 EPS. Alliant Energy’s revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Alliant Energy will post 3.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Alliant Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were given a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 31st. Alliant Energy’s payout ratio is currently 74.42%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alliant Energy

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Natixis Advisors LLC increased its stake in Alliant Energy by 14.7% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 196,318 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,915,000 after purchasing an additional 25,161 shares in the last quarter. Seven Eight Capital LP acquired a new position in shares of Alliant Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,248,000. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new position in Alliant Energy in the 3rd quarter worth $4,742,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in Alliant Energy by 9.4% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,183,765 shares of the company’s stock worth $71,839,000 after acquiring an additional 101,387 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Alliant Energy by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,216,475 shares of the company’s stock valued at $134,518,000 after purchasing an additional 14,225 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.