United Asset Strategies Inc. Grows Holdings in Alliant Energy Corporation $LNT

Key Points

• United Asset Strategies Inc. increased its stake in Alliant Energy Corporation by 31.2%, acquiring an additional 18,624 shares during the first quarter.
• Wall Street analysts have generally favorable ratings for Alliant Energy, with multiple brokerages raising price targets, including a new target of $71.00 set by Jefferies Financial Group.
• Alliant Energy recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.5075 per share, representing an annualized yield of 3.1% with a payout ratio of 62.65%.

United Asset Strategies Inc. increased its position in Alliant Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:LNT - Free Report) by 31.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 78,376 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 18,624 shares during the period. United Asset Strategies Inc.'s holdings in Alliant Energy were worth $5,043,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hughes Financial Services LLC bought a new position in Alliant Energy in the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management purchased a new position in Alliant Energy in the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Alliant Energy in the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. First Command Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in Alliant Energy in the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Tsfg LLC purchased a new position in Alliant Energy in the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. Institutional investors own 79.90% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on LNT. Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Alliant Energy from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 14th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $71.00 price target on shares of Alliant Energy and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Alliant Energy from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $68.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, July 7th. 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. Finally, 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, August 11th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Alliant Energy currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $65.50.

Alliant Energy Stock Performance

Alliant Energy stock traded down $0.29 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $65.90. The stock had a trading volume of 501,365 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,985,966. The firm's fifty day moving average is $63.48 and its two-hundred day moving average is $62.42. The company has a market capitalization of $16.93 billion, a PE ratio of 20.35, a P/E/G ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.53. Alliant Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $56.08 and a 52-week high of $67.11. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.62 by $0.06. Alliant Energy had a net margin of 20.07% and a return on equity of 12.25%. The company had revenue of $961.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $977.15 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.57 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Alliant Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.150-3.25 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Alliant Energy Corporation will post 3.23 EPS for the current year.

Alliant Energy Announces Dividend

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