Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) Sets New 12-Month High - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• 52-week high: Alliant Energy shares hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $73.83 and last at $74.12 (up ~1.7%), giving the company a market cap around $19.17 billion.
• Analyst sentiment: The stock carries a consensus “Moderate Buy” with an average price target of $75.44 (nine Buys, three Holds); notable targets include RBC $82 and UBS/Wells Fargo at $75.
• Earnings and dividend boost: Alliant beat Q results with $0.60 EPS vs. $0.58 expected and revenue of $1.06B (up 9% YoY), and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.535 (annualized $2.14, ~2.9% yield).

Alliant Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:LNT - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $73.83 and last traded at $74.12, with a volume of 27620 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $72.99.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on LNT shares. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on Alliant Energy in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $82.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group set a $75.00 price objective on Alliant Energy and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $75.00 price target on shares of Alliant Energy in a report on Sunday, February 22nd. Argus reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Alliant Energy in a report on Friday, January 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Alliant Energy in a report on Monday, December 29th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $75.44.

Alliant Energy Trading Up 1.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a current ratio of 0.80. The stock's fifty day moving average is $70.46 and its 200 day moving average is $68.05. The stock has a market cap of $19.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.61.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 20th. The company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.58 by $0.02. Alliant Energy had a net margin of 18.57% and a return on equity of 11.51%. The firm had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $673.11 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.70 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Alliant Energy Corporation will post 3.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alliant Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th were paid a $0.535 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 30th. This is an increase from Alliant Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. This represents a $2.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Alliant Energy's payout ratio is 67.94%.

Institutional Trading of Alliant Energy

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LNT. Carnegie Investment Counsel increased its holdings in Alliant Energy by 4.1% during the third quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 622,821 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,984,000 after buying an additional 24,482 shares during the period. Liberty One Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Alliant Energy by 91.7% during the third quarter. Liberty One Investment Management LLC now owns 984,790 shares of the company's stock valued at $66,389,000 after buying an additional 470,967 shares during the period. Benjamin Edwards Inc. purchased a new position in Alliant Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $4,015,000. AlphaQuest LLC purchased a new position in Alliant Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,314,000. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd increased its holdings in Alliant Energy by 108.9% during the third quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd now owns 47,101 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,175,000 after buying an additional 24,549 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.90% of the company's stock.

About Alliant Energy

Alliant Energy Corporation NASDAQ: LNT is a publicly traded energy holding company headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin, that provides regulated electric and natural gas utility services in the American Midwest. The company serves customers primarily in Wisconsin and Iowa through its regulated utility subsidiaries and operates as an integrated provider responsible for generation, transmission and distribution of energy to residential, commercial and industrial customers.

Alliant Energy's core activities include operating and maintaining electric generation assets, managing the regional transmission and distribution network, and delivering natural gas service to its franchise territories.

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