Alliant Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:LNT) Receives Average Recommendation of "Hold" from Analysts

Shares of Alliant Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:LNT - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus recommendation of "Hold" by the ten research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $65.50.

A number of equities analysts recently commented on LNT shares. Wolfe Research upgraded Alliant Energy from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $68.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, July 7th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $71.00 price target on Alliant Energy and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $67.00 price target (up previously from $65.00) on shares of Alliant Energy in a report on Friday, July 11th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Alliant Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on Alliant Energy from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alliant Energy

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Hughes Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alliant Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Alliant Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Rossby Financial LCC acquired a new stake in shares of Alliant Energy in the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Global Trust Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Alliant Energy in the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Alliant Energy by 81.6% in the second quarter. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC now owns 494 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 222 shares in the last quarter. 79.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alliant Energy Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LNT opened at $64.62 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.94, a PEG ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.53. The business has a 50-day moving average of $62.87 and a 200-day moving average of $62.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.46. Alliant Energy has a fifty-two week low of $56.08 and a fifty-two week high of $66.76.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $961.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $977.15 million. Alliant Energy had a return on equity of 12.25% and a net margin of 20.07%. Alliant Energy's revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.57 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Alliant Energy will post 3.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alliant Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st were given a dividend of $0.5075 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $2.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. Alliant Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 62.65%.

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.

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