ALLETE, Inc. (NYSE:ALE) Shares Acquired by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in ALLETE, Inc. (NYSE:ALE - Free Report) by 2.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 184,915 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,576 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.32% of ALLETE worth $11,982,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ALE. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC purchased a new stake in ALLETE in the 3rd quarter valued at about $38,000. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in shares of ALLETE by 32.9% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 876 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares during the period. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of ALLETE by 31.0% in the 3rd quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 1,563 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $100,000 after acquiring an additional 370 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of ALLETE by 61.7% during the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,431 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $158,000 after purchasing an additional 928 shares during the period. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of ALLETE by 14.8% during the 3rd quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,135 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $201,000 after purchasing an additional 405 shares during the period. 76.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Remove Ads

ALLETE Stock Down 0.2 %

NYSE ALE traded down $0.11 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $65.58. 229,516 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 345,208. The company has a 50 day moving average of $65.35 and a two-hundred day moving average of $64.61. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm has a market cap of $3.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.18 and a beta of 0.80. ALLETE, Inc. has a 52-week low of $56.45 and a 52-week high of $65.99.

ALLETE (NYSE:ALE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The utilities provider reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.02 by ($0.15). ALLETE had a return on equity of 5.97% and a net margin of 11.72%.

ALLETE Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $0.73 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This is a boost from ALLETE's previous quarterly dividend of $0.71. This represents a $2.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.45%. ALLETE's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 94.19%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com initiated coverage on ALLETE in a research report on Friday, January 10th. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock.

ALLETE Company Profile

ALLETE, Inc operates as an energy company. The company operates through Regulated Operations, ALLETE Clean Energy, and Corporate and Other segments. It generates electricity from coal-fired, biomass co-fired / natural gas, hydroelectric, wind, and solar. In addition, the company provides regulated utility electric services in northwestern Wisconsin to approximately 15,000 electric customers, 13,000 natural gas customers, and 10,000 water customers, as well as regulated utility electric services in northeastern Minnesota to approximately 150,000 retail customers and 14 non-affiliated municipal customers.