Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Sells 675 Shares of Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund lessened its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) by 8.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,594 shares of the company’s stock after selling 675 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in Alliant Energy were worth $461,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in Alliant Energy during the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Eastern Bank acquired a new stake in Alliant Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. JNBA Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in Alliant Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $31,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC acquired a new stake in Alliant Energy in the 2nd quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Alliant Energy in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $43,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on LNT shares. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of Alliant Energy from $65.00 to $61.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Barclays cut their target price 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. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Alliant Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $50.00 to $62.50 in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Scotiabank boosted their target price on Alliant Energy from $58.00 to $64.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Alliant Energy in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $67.00 price target for the company. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $63.06.

Alliant Energy Price Performance

Shares of LNT opened at $62.25 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $60.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $55.88. Alliant Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $46.80 and a 1-year high of $62.49. 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 has a market cap of $15.97 billion, a PE ratio of 24.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.58.

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

Alliant Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 31st were issued a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.08%. Alliant Energy’s payout ratio is 74.42%.

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.