Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) Stake Lessened by Swiss National Bank

Swiss National Bank decreased its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) by 2.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 790,300 shares of the company’s stock after selling 18,300 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank owned 0.31% of Alliant Energy worth $40,542,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Alliant Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Alliant Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt acquired a new stake in Alliant Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alliant Energy during the 3rd quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Alliant Energy during the 3rd quarter worth $45,000. 79.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Alliant Energy

In related news, CEO Lisa M. Barton acquired 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was bought at an average price of $48.56 per share, with a total value of $53,416.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 36,444 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,769,720.64. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on LNT. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH decreased their price objective on shares of Alliant Energy from $48.50 to $48.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 29th. Scotiabank lowered their price objective on Alliant Energy from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 22nd. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Alliant Energy from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Alliant Energy from $55.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Alliant Energy from $55.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $51.38.

Alliant Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:LNT opened at $51.13 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $13.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.54. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $49.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $49.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.56 and a quick ratio of 0.40. Alliant Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $45.15 and a fifty-two week high of $56.26.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 3rd. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.62. The company had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.01 billion. Alliant Energy had a net margin of 17.53% and a return on equity of 10.57%. The firm’s revenue was down 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.65 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Alliant Energy Co. will post 3.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Alliant Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 29th. Alliant Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 69.82%.

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.