BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S Makes New Investment in Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT)

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S purchased a new stake in shares of Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 527,572 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $31,201,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S owned 0.21% of Alliant Energy as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Alliant Energy in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $602,000. Arvest Bank Trust Division purchased a new stake in Alliant Energy in the third quarter worth $2,063,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Alliant Energy in the third quarter valued at $72,000. Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its position in shares of Alliant Energy by 698.3% during the 3rd quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 451,477 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,400,000 after buying an additional 394,920 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Alliant Energy by 9.4% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,183,765 shares of the company's stock worth $71,839,000 after acquiring an additional 101,387 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.90% of the company's stock.

Alliant Energy Price Performance

Alliant Energy stock traded up $0.30 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $61.53. 635,557 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,603,051. The company has a market cap of $15.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.87, a PEG ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.86. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $62.36 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $60.82. Alliant Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $49.05 and a 52-week high of $66.54.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $0.70 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.68 by $0.02. Alliant Energy had a net margin of 17.33% and a return on equity of 11.39%. The company had revenue of $976.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.14 billion. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Alliant Energy Co. will post 3.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Alliant Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a $0.5075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. This represents a $2.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.30%. Alliant Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 75.46%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on LNT shares. Barclays downgraded shares of Alliant Energy from an "equal weight" rating to an "underweight" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $59.00 to $61.00 in a report on Tuesday. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Alliant Energy from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Guggenheim reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $57.00 target price on shares of Alliant Energy in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Alliant Energy from $66.00 to $64.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $63.55.

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.