HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC Reduces Holdings in Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT)

HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) by 53.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 128,912 shares of the company’s stock after selling 145,167 shares during the quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Alliant Energy were worth $7,824,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy by 132.3% during the first quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 11,487 shares of the company’s stock valued at $579,000 after acquiring an additional 6,543 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers grew its stake in shares of Alliant Energy by 200.8% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 215,821 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,877,000 after buying an additional 144,077 shares during the period. Cetera Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Alliant Energy by 168.5% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 51,259 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,583,000 after acquiring an additional 32,166 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale raised its position in shares of Alliant Energy by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 52,049 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,609,000 after buying an additional 1,420 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV lifted its holdings in Alliant Energy by 20.6% in the second quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 2,431 shares of the company’s stock worth $124,000 after buying an additional 416 shares during the period. 79.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on LNT shares. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Alliant Energy in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $67.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Alliant Energy from $66.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded Alliant Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $50.00 to $62.50 in a research note on Tuesday, August 13th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Alliant Energy from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Alliant Energy from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $63.06.

Alliant Energy Price Performance

Alliant Energy stock opened at $62.28 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.14, a PEG ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.59. The business has a 50-day moving average of $60.62 and a 200-day moving average of $56.56. Alliant Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $46.80 and a 1 year high of $64.19. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.08 billion. Alliant Energy had a net margin of 16.66% and a return on equity of 10.56%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.05 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Alliant Energy Co. will post 3.04 EPS for the current year.

Alliant Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st were issued a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.08%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 31st. Alliant Energy’s payout ratio is currently 74.42%.

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.