Washington Trust Advisors Inc. Sells 500 Shares of Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT)

Washington Trust Advisors Inc. lowered its position in Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) by 10.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 4,366 shares of the company’s stock after selling 500 shares during the period. Washington Trust Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Alliant Energy were worth $224,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Financial Freedom LLC bought a new position in shares of Alliant Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Clear Street Markets LLC increased its holdings in Alliant Energy by 95.3% in the 1st quarter. Clear Street Markets LLC now owns 494 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 241 shares during the last quarter. Natixis purchased a new stake in Alliant Energy during the second quarter valued at about $30,000. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA bought a new position in Alliant Energy during the third quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Alliant Energy in the third quarter worth about $42,000. Institutional investors own 79.90% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on LNT shares. Barclays reiterated an “equal weight” rating and issued a $53.00 price objective (up from $50.00) on shares of Alliant Energy in a research note on Tuesday, January 2nd. BMO Capital Markets downgraded Alliant Energy from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and set a $55.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. One equities research 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $54.06.

Alliant Energy Price Performance

Shares of LNT stock traded up $0.45 during trading on Thursday, hitting $50.22. The company had a trading volume of 1,153,893 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,020,186. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. Alliant Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $45.15 and a 52 week high of $56.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.55. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $48.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $49.62.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 16th. The company reported $0.48 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.55 by ($0.07). Alliant Energy had a net margin of 17.46% and a return on equity of 10.85%. The firm had revenue of $961.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.25 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.46 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Alliant Energy Co. will post 3.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Alliant Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, January 31st were issued a $0.48 dividend. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.82%. This is a positive change from Alliant Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, January 30th. Alliant Energy’s payout ratio is presently 69.06%.

Insider Activity at Alliant Energy

In other Alliant Energy news, CEO Lisa M. Barton purchased 1,100 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $48.56 per share, with a total value of $53,416.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 36,444 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,769,720.64. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.25% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.