Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) Sets New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Shares of Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $62.59 and last traded at $62.27, with a volume of 42173 shares. The stock had previously closed at $62.25.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on LNT shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Alliant Energy from $66.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th. 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 report on Thursday, August 29th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of Alliant Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $50.00 to $62.50 in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Alliant Energy from $52.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of Alliant Energy from $58.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $63.06.

Alliant Energy Price Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average price is $60.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $55.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.72. The company has a market cap of $16.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.44, a P/E/G ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.58.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.05. Alliant Energy had a net margin of 16.66% and a return on equity of 10.56%. The company had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.05 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up .4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Alliant Energy Co. will post 3.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alliant Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were paid a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 31st. Alliant Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 74.42%.

Institutional Trading of Alliant Energy

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy by 28.9% during the 1st quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 44,537 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,245,000 after purchasing an additional 9,977 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Alliant Energy by 2,451.3% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 57,812 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,914,000 after purchasing an additional 55,546 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its position in shares of Alliant Energy by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 100,852 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,085,000 after purchasing an additional 1,571 shares during the period. Natixis acquired a new position in shares of Alliant Energy in the 1st quarter worth approximately $880,000. Finally, Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Alliant Energy by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC now owns 23,942 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,207,000 after purchasing an additional 760 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.90% of the company’s stock.

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.