Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) Price Target Raised to $56.00 at Wells Fargo & Company

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) had its target price boosted by Wells Fargo & Company from $55.00 to $56.00 in a research report report published on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on LNT. Scotiabank reduced their target price on shares of Alliant Energy from $57.00 to $53.00 and set a sector outperform rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Alliant Energy from $55.00 to $54.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 11th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Alliant Energy from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a market perform rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH cut their price target on Alliant Energy from $48.50 to $48.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus price target of $51.38.

Alliant Energy Stock Performance

Shares of LNT opened at $50.50 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $49.07 and a 200 day moving average of $49.56. The company has a current ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. Alliant Energy has a 12 month low of $45.15 and a 12 month high of $56.26. The company has a market capitalization of $12.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.36, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.54.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) last announced its 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 firm had revenue of $1.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.01 billion. Alliant Energy had a return on equity of 10.57% and a net margin of 17.53%. The business’s revenue was down 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.65 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Alliant Energy will post 3.08 earnings per share for the current year.

Alliant Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be paid a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 29th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.80%. Alliant Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 69.82%.

Insider Activity

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alliant Energy

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in LNT. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Alliant Energy by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,194,528 shares of the company’s stock worth $471,679,000 after buying an additional 505,101 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in Alliant Energy by 68.3% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 4,802,777 shares of the company’s stock worth $246,382,000 after acquiring an additional 1,948,485 shares in the last quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. increased its stake in Alliant Energy by 6.2% in the fourth quarter. Cohen & Steers Inc. now owns 3,651,565 shares of the company’s stock valued at $187,325,000 after acquiring an additional 213,522 shares during the last quarter. Mairs & Power Inc. raised its position in Alliant Energy by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Mairs & Power Inc. now owns 3,173,484 shares of the company’s stock valued at $162,800,000 after purchasing an additional 67,550 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Alliant Energy by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,491,130 shares of the company’s stock worth $127,795,000 after purchasing an additional 55,131 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.90% of the company’s stock.

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.