Enhancing Capital LLC Buys Shares of 31,560 Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT)

Enhancing Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 31,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,866,000. Alliant Energy accounts for about 1.5% of Enhancing Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest position.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in LNT. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in Alliant Energy by 7,083.3% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 431 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 425 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Alliant Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. ORG Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Alliant Energy by 517.0% during the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 617 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 517 shares in the last quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co lifted its holdings in Alliant Energy by 251.2% in the fourth quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co now owns 878 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 628 shares during the period. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in Alliant Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $53,000. Institutional investors own 79.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on LNT shares. Scotiabank lowered shares of Alliant Energy from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $64.00 to $67.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Alliant Energy from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Guggenheim reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $57.00 target price on shares of Alliant Energy in a report on Monday, February 24th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $63.25.

Alliant Energy Price Performance

NASDAQ LNT opened at $63.53 on Tuesday. Alliant Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $47.23 and a fifty-two week high of $66.54. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $60.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $60.41. The firm has a market cap of $16.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.72.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.02. Alliant Energy had a return on equity of 11.39% and a net margin of 17.33%. The business had revenue of $976.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.14 billion. On average, analysts anticipate that Alliant Energy Co. will post 3.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alliant Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced 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 of this dividend 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 3.20%. Alliant Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 75.46%.

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.