United Asset Strategies Inc. Buys 280 Shares of Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT)

United Asset Strategies Inc. increased its position in Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) by 0.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 59,752 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 280 shares during the quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc.’s holdings in Alliant Energy were worth $3,534,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of LNT. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy by 7,083.3% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 431 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 425 shares in the last quarter. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in shares of Alliant Energy in the third quarter worth approximately $28,000. Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in Alliant Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. JNBA Financial Advisors bought a new stake in Alliant Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, ORG Partners LLC grew its stake in Alliant Energy by 517.0% in the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 617 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 517 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.90% of the company’s stock.

Alliant Energy Price Performance

LNT opened at $58.77 on Monday. 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 stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $60.16 and its 200 day simple moving average is $59.01. The firm has a market cap of $15.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.78, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.60. Alliant Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $46.80 and a 1 year high of $64.19.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) last issued its earnings results 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 firm had revenue of $1.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.05 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Alliant Energy Co. will post 3.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Alliant Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.5075 per share. This represents a $2.03 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.45%. This is an increase from Alliant Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. Alliant Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 74.42%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LNT has been the topic of several research reports. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Alliant Energy from $52.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Barclays lowered their price target on Alliant Energy from $61.00 to $59.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Scotiabank cut Alliant Energy from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $64.00 to $67.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Alliant Energy from $66.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Alliant Energy from $65.00 to $61.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Six 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.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $63.39.

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.