Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC Decreases Stock Position in Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT)

Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC cut its holdings in Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) by 35.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,486 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,986 shares during the period. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC’s holdings in Alliant Energy were worth $324,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Alliant Energy by 8.2% in the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 2,509 shares of the company’s stock worth $148,000 after buying an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. Utah Retirement Systems raised its stake in Alliant Energy by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Utah Retirement Systems now owns 42,394 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,507,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its stake in Alliant Energy by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 4,428 shares of the company’s stock valued at $262,000 after purchasing an additional 211 shares during the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC raised its stake in Alliant Energy by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 15,937 shares of the company’s stock valued at $942,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Accredited Investors Inc. raised its stake in Alliant Energy by 7.6% in the 4th quarter. Accredited Investors Inc. now owns 3,691 shares of the company’s stock valued at $218,000 after purchasing an additional 262 shares during the last quarter. 79.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Alliant Energy Trading Up 0.8%

NASDAQ LNT opened at $61.72 on Monday. Alliant Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $49.05 and a 12 month high of $66.54. The company has a 50-day moving average of $61.60 and a 200-day moving average of $61.05. 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 $15.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.58.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The company reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.12. Alliant Energy had a net margin of 17.33% and a return on equity of 11.39%. The firm had revenue of $1.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.09 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.62 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Alliant Energy Co. will post 3.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Alliant Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th were issued a $0.5075 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $2.03 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.29%. Alliant Energy’s payout ratio is 70.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on LNT shares. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Alliant Energy from $66.00 to $64.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Barclays downgraded shares of Alliant Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $59.00 to $61.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Guggenheim reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $57.00 target price on shares of Alliant Energy in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Alliant Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $71.00 target price on shares of Alliant Energy and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $63.95.

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.