Alliant Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:LNT) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Key Points

• Alliant Energy Corporation's short interest surged by 54.1% to 11,880,000 shares in August, with a days-to-cover ratio of 6.3 days.
• Following recent earnings, the company reported $0.68 earnings per share, exceeding estimates, with revenue of $961 million for the quarter.
• Alliant Energy has a consensus rating of "Hold" with a target price of $65.50, based on nine different analysts' ratings.

Alliant Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:LNT - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest during the month of August. As of August 15th, there was short interest totaling 11,880,000 shares, a growth of 54.1% from the July 31st total of 7,710,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,880,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 6.3 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 1,880,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 6.3 days.

Alliant Energy Stock Up 0.3%

LNT stock traded up $0.20 during trading on Friday, reaching $64.86. 1,127,278 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,853,968. The firm's 50 day moving average is $64.56 and its 200 day moving average is $62.70. Alliant Energy has a twelve month low of $56.08 and a twelve month high of $67.11. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. The firm has a market cap of $16.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.54.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.68 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.62 by $0.06. Alliant Energy had a return on equity of 12.25% and a net margin of 20.07%.The business had revenue of $961.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $977.15 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.57 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. Alliant Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.150-3.25 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Alliant Energy will post 3.23 EPS for the current year.

Alliant Energy Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Wolfe Research upgraded Alliant Energy from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $68.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $71.00 target price on Alliant Energy and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and set a $67.00 target price (up previously from $65.00) on shares of Alliant Energy in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Alliant Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on Alliant Energy from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $65.50.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Centaurus Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy by 9.7% in the 2nd quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 1,896 shares of the company's stock valued at $115,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Horizon Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 3,682 shares of the company's stock valued at $235,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. Integrity Alliance LLC. lifted its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy by 3.0% in the 2nd quarter. Integrity Alliance LLC. now owns 6,006 shares of the company's stock valued at $363,000 after acquiring an additional 173 shares during the last quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,805 shares of the company's stock valued at $230,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Financial Advisors Network Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy by 4.1% in the 1st quarter. Financial Advisors Network Inc. now owns 4,737 shares of the company's stock valued at $305,000 after acquiring an additional 188 shares during the last quarter. 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.