Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) Shares Sold by Thompson Investment Management Inc.

Thompson Investment Management Inc. lessened its holdings in Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) by 0.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 79,812 shares of the company’s stock after selling 388 shares during the quarter. Thompson Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Alliant Energy were worth $4,720,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of LNT. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its position in Alliant Energy by 14.7% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 196,318 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,915,000 after acquiring an additional 25,161 shares in the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG purchased a new position in Alliant Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $4,742,000. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Alliant Energy by 9.4% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,183,765 shares of the company’s stock valued at $71,839,000 after acquiring an additional 101,387 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Alliant Energy by 0.6% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,216,475 shares of the company’s stock valued at $134,518,000 after acquiring an additional 14,225 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC purchased a new position in Alliant Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $257,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.90% of the company’s stock.

Alliant Energy Stock Performance

NASDAQ LNT opened at $59.47 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $59.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $59.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.86. Alliant Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $46.80 and a fifty-two week high of $64.19.

Alliant Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st will be given a $0.5075 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 31st. This is a boost from Alliant Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $2.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.41%. Alliant Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 78.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on LNT. Scotiabank cut Alliant Energy from a “sector outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $64.00 to $67.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Alliant Energy from $65.00 to $61.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Alliant Energy from $66.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on Alliant Energy from $61.00 to $59.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target 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.