Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Boosts Stock Position in Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. grew its position in Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) by 0.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,815,769 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 9,281 shares during the period. Alliant Energy accounts for about 1.0% of Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. owned approximately 0.71% of Alliant Energy worth $107,385,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of LNT. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Alliant Energy by 47.6% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,652 shares of the company’s stock worth $161,000 after purchasing an additional 855 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Alliant Energy by 10.4% in the 3rd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,557 shares of the company’s stock valued at $580,000 after purchasing an additional 902 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Alliant Energy by 9.4% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,183,765 shares of the company’s stock worth $71,839,000 after purchasing an additional 101,387 shares in the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its position in Alliant Energy by 4.5% during the 3rd quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 76,786 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,660,000 after purchasing an additional 3,294 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its stake in Alliant Energy by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 588,744 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,731,000 after purchasing an additional 14,740 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.90% of the company’s stock.

Alliant Energy Stock Performance

NASDAQ LNT opened at $62.49 on Monday. 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 Co. has a twelve month low of $47.23 and a twelve month high of $66.54. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $60.36 and a 200 day moving average of $60.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $16.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.23, a PEG ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.54.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.70 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $976.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.14 billion. Alliant Energy had a net margin of 17.33% and a return on equity of 11.39%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Alliant Energy Co. will post 3.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alliant Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st were paid a $0.5075 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. This is a positive change from Alliant Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $2.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.25%. Alliant Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 75.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LNT has been the subject of several research reports. Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $57.00 price objective on shares of Alliant Energy in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Scotiabank downgraded Alliant Energy from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $64.00 to $67.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Alliant Energy from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $63.25.

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.