Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) Short Interest Update

Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in November. As of November 30th, there was short interest totalling 7,080,000 shares, a growth of 16.1% from the November 15th total of 6,100,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,550,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.6 days.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Alliant Energy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in Alliant Energy by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 10,691,172 shares of the company’s stock worth $648,847,000 after purchasing an additional 65,110 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Alliant Energy by 1.4% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,593,166 shares of the company’s stock worth $398,880,000 after purchasing an additional 92,525 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in Alliant Energy by 8.5% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,512,770 shares of the company’s stock valued at $395,260,000 after purchasing an additional 512,429 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted 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 worth $134,518,000 after purchasing an additional 14,225 shares during the period. Finally, Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. increased its holdings in Alliant Energy by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,756,533 shares of the company’s stock valued at $89,408,000 after buying an additional 29,358 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.90% of the company’s stock.

Alliant Energy Stock Performance

LNT stock opened at $59.88 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. Alliant Energy has a twelve month low of $46.80 and a twelve month high of $64.19. The company has a market cap of $15.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.59. The business’s fifty day moving average is $60.78 and its 200-day moving average is $57.35.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $1.08 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.08 billion. Alliant Energy had a net margin of 16.66% and a return on equity of 10.56%. The firm’s revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.05 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Alliant Energy will post 3.04 EPS for the current year.

Alliant Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, October 31st were issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, October 31st. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.21%. Alliant Energy’s payout ratio is presently 74.42%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on LNT shares. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Alliant Energy from $61.00 to $59.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Alliant Energy from $62.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Alliant Energy in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “hold” rating and a $67.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Alliant Energy from $64.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Alliant Energy from $66.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 4th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $63.39.

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.