Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Grows Position in Alliant Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:LNT)

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its shareholding in Alliant Energy Corporation by 8.6%, now owning approximately 0.18% of the company valued at $29.9 million.
• Alliant Energy reported $0.68 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding expectations and marking a 7.5% revenue increase year-over-year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.5075 per share, representing an annualized yield of 3.1% and a dividend payout ratio of 62.65%.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Alliant Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:LNT - Free Report) by 8.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 464,668 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 36,862 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned approximately 0.18% of Alliant Energy worth $29,901,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Utah Retirement Systems grew its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Leavell Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in 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 purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Alliant Energy by 5.9% in the 1st quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,629 shares of the company's stock valued at $234,000 after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Alliant Energy by 28.9% in the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 931 shares of the company's stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares during the period. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC grew its stake in Alliant Energy by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 4,428 shares of the company's stock valued at $262,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on LNT shares. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $67.00 price target (up previously from $65.00) on shares of Alliant Energy in a research report on Friday, July 11th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and set a $68.00 price target (up previously from $66.00) on shares of Alliant Energy in a research report on Monday. Barclays cut Alliant Energy from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and upped their price target for the company from $59.00 to $61.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wolfe Research raised Alliant Energy from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $68.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Alliant Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Alliant Energy presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $64.59.

Alliant Energy Price Performance

LNT traded up $0.57 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $65.37. 1,217,923 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,977,139. The company's 50-day moving average is $62.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $62.00. The company has a market cap of $16.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.18, a P/E/G ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. Alliant Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $55.98 and a 12-month high of $66.76.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. The business had revenue of $961.00 million for 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%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.57 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Alliant Energy Corporation will post 3.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alliant Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be issued a $0.5075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $2.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Alliant Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.65%.

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.