ALLETE (NYSE:ALE) Sees Large Volume Increase - Here's Why

Shares of ALLETE, Inc. (NYSE:ALE - Get Free Report) saw unusually-high trading volume on Wednesday . Approximately 408,065 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 17% from the previous session's volume of 349,611 shares.The stock last traded at $65.19 and had previously closed at $65.45.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on ALE. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of ALLETE in a report on Friday, January 10th. They set a "hold" rating on the stock. Sidoti upgraded shares of ALLETE from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $61.33.

ALLETE Trading Up 0.1 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 1.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.99 and a beta of 0.80. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $64.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $64.16.

ALLETE (NYSE:ALE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.78 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.99 by ($0.21). ALLETE had a net margin of 11.49% and a return on equity of 5.99%. The firm had revenue of $407.20 million for the quarter. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.49 earnings per share. ALLETE's quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year.

ALLETE Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a dividend of $0.705 per share. This is a positive change from ALLETE's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. This represents a $2.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.31%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. ALLETE's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 90.38%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ALLETE

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in ALE. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in ALLETE by 955.1% in the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 897,622 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $55,967,000 after acquiring an additional 812,548 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its holdings in ALLETE by 6,668.6% during the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 239,204 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $14,941,000 after purchasing an additional 235,670 shares during the period. Water Island Capital LLC purchased a new stake in ALLETE in the second quarter worth $11,583,000. Gabelli Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of ALLETE by 59.1% in the second quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 441,564 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $27,532,000 after buying an additional 164,064 shares during the period. Finally, Squarepoint Ops LLC purchased a new position in shares of ALLETE during the 2nd quarter valued at $10,161,000. 76.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.