Merit Financial Group LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Alliant Energy Corporation $LNT

Key Points

• Merit Financial Group boosted its stake in Alliant Energy by 271.7% in Q4, adding 32,300 shares to hold 44,187 shares valued at $2.87M, and institutional investors now own about 79.9% of the company.
• Alliant Energy beat quarterly estimates (EPS $0.60 vs. $0.58; revenue $1.06B vs. $673.11M), announced a $0.535 quarterly dividend (annualized $2.14, ~3.0% yield), and carries a consensus analyst rating of "Moderate Buy" with a $76.33 price target.

Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Alliant Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:LNT - Free Report) by 271.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 44,187 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 32,300 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Alliant Energy were worth $2,873,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Glenmede Investment Management LP boosted its stake in Alliant Energy by 0.7% during the third quarter. Glenmede Investment Management LP now owns 22,793 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,536,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the period. Quadrant Capital Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Alliant Energy by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 9,117 shares of the company's stock valued at $615,000 after acquiring an additional 158 shares during the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Alliant Energy by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,517 shares of the company's stock valued at $229,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group boosted its position in shares of Alliant Energy by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 4,316 shares of the company's stock valued at $291,000 after acquiring an additional 192 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blair William & Co. IL boosted its position in shares of Alliant Energy by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 17,538 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,182,000 after acquiring an additional 193 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.90% of the company's stock.

Alliant Energy Stock Down 0.6%

LNT opened at $72.40 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $18.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.61. The business's 50-day moving average price is $71.48 and its 200-day moving average price is $68.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. Alliant Energy Corporation has a 12 month low of $58.67 and a 12 month high of $74.40.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 20th. The company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $673.11 million. Alliant Energy had a return on equity of 11.51% and a net margin of 18.57%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.70 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Alliant Energy Corporation will post 3.42 EPS for the current year.

Alliant Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 30th will be issued a $0.535 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $2.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Alliant Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.94%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on LNT shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Alliant Energy in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $75.00 target price on shares of Alliant Energy in a research note on Sunday, February 22nd. HSBC raised shares of Alliant Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada started coverage on shares of Alliant Energy in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $82.00 target price on the stock. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $79.00 target price (up from $78.00) on shares of Alliant Energy in a research note on Friday. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $76.33.

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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