National Bank of Canada FI Buys 72,701 Shares of Alliant Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:LNT)

Key Points

• National Bank of Canada FI increased its stake in Alliant Energy Corporation by 34.1%, owning approximately 286,083 shares valued at $18.4 million.
• Alliant Energy reported a net income of $0.68 per share for the most recent quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations and marking a 7.5% increase year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.5075 per share, representing an annual yield of 3.1%, with a payout ratio of 62.65%.

National Bank of Canada FI raised its position in shares of Alliant Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:LNT - Free Report) by 34.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 286,083 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 72,701 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI owned approximately 0.11% of Alliant Energy worth $18,409,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Citigroup Inc. raised its holdings in Alliant Energy by 54.1% during the 1st quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 277,174 shares of the company's stock valued at $17,836,000 after buying an additional 97,257 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Alliant Energy by 8.6% during the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 464,668 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,901,000 after buying an additional 36,862 shares during the period. Altfest L J & Co. Inc. raised its holdings in Alliant Energy by 23.2% during the 1st quarter. Altfest L J & Co. Inc. now owns 12,466 shares of the company's stock valued at $802,000 after buying an additional 2,346 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Alliant Energy by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,270,594 shares of the company's stock valued at $146,113,000 after buying an additional 17,681 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Alliant Energy by 0.5% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 32,822,215 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,112,110,000 after buying an additional 158,507 shares during the period. 79.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alliant Energy Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of LNT traded down $0.65 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $64.72. 2,286,231 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,975,982. Alliant Energy Corporation has a 52 week low of $56.08 and a 52 week high of $66.76. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. The company's 50 day moving average is $62.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $62.02. The company has a market capitalization of $16.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.98, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.53.

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 (EPS) 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 quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.57 EPS. The business's revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Alliant Energy Corporation will post 3.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Alliant Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be given a dividend of $0.5075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $2.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Alliant Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 62.65%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America increased their price target on Alliant Energy from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Alliant Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. 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 note on Monday, July 7th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $68.00 target price (up previously from $66.00) on shares of Alliant Energy in a research note on Monday. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $67.00 target price (up previously from $65.00) on shares of Alliant Energy in a research note on Friday, July 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Alliant Energy presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $65.50.

Alliant Energy 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.