Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) Rating Increased to Outperform at Wolfe Research

Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT - Free Report) from a peer perform rating to an outperform rating in a report released on Monday, Marketbeat.com reports. They currently have $68.00 price objective on the stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. UBS Group increased their price target on Alliant Energy from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Barclays lowered Alliant Energy from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $59.00 to $61.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group set a $71.00 price target on Alliant Energy and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Alliant Energy from $66.00 to $64.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Alliant Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $64.32.

Alliant Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ LNT traded up $0.88 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $62.60. 1,799,473 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,729,961. Alliant Energy has a 1-year low of $51.44 and a 1-year high of $66.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.34 and a quick ratio of 0.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.59, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.56. The company's 50-day moving average price is $61.19 and its 200-day moving average price is $61.04.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $1.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.09 billion. Alliant Energy had a return on equity of 12.01% and a net margin of 18.26%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.62 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Alliant Energy will post 3.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alliant Energy

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Horizon Investments LLC lifted its stake 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. Financial Advisors Network Inc. lifted its stake 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. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its stake in shares of Alliant Energy by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 14,412 shares of the company's stock valued at $871,000 after acquiring an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. Utah Retirement Systems lifted its stake in shares of Alliant Energy by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Utah Retirement Systems now owns 42,394 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,507,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Leavell Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Alliant Energy by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,061 shares of the company's stock valued at $390,000 after acquiring an additional 200 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.