Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV Acquires Shares of 23,664 Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT)

Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV purchased a new position in Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 23,664 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,399,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of LNT. RDA Financial Network raised its position in Alliant Energy by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. RDA Financial Network now owns 7,990 shares of the company's stock worth $473,000 after buying an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy by 8.2% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 2,509 shares of the company's stock worth $148,000 after buying an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Utah Retirement Systems boosted its stake in Alliant Energy by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Utah Retirement Systems now owns 42,394 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,507,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its position in shares of Alliant Energy by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 4,428 shares of the company's stock valued at $262,000 after buying an additional 211 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Savant Capital LLC boosted its stake in Alliant Energy by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 15,937 shares of the company's stock worth $942,000 after buying an additional 237 shares during the period. 79.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LNT has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $57.00 price target on shares of Alliant Energy in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Barclays downgraded shares of Alliant Energy from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $59.00 to $61.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Alliant Energy from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $63.55.

Alliant Energy Stock Performance

NASDAQ LNT traded down $2.24 on Monday, reaching $59.52. 4,755,669 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,630,315. Alliant Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $49.05 and a fifty-two week high of $66.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.86. The firm has a market cap of $15.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.13, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.58. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $61.85 and a 200-day moving average price of $60.85.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $1.13 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.09 billion. Alliant Energy had a return on equity of 11.39% and a net margin of 17.33%. The company's revenue was up 9.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.62 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Alliant Energy Co. will post 3.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alliant Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.5075 per share. This represents a $2.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.41%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 30th. Alliant Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 70.00%.

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.