5,675 Shares in ALLETE, Inc. (NYSE:ALE) Purchased by Empowered Funds LLC

Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new position in ALLETE, Inc. (NYSE:ALE - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 5,675 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $368,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Glazer Capital LLC acquired a new position in ALLETE during the third quarter worth about $5,766,000. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of ALLETE during the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,378,000. Barclays PLC lifted its stake in ALLETE by 187.1% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 100,079 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $6,425,000 after buying an additional 65,222 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its stake in ALLETE by 107.8% in the 3rd quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 121,631 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $7,807,000 after buying an additional 63,091 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Verition Fund Management LLC grew its holdings in ALLETE by 91.6% during the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 96,387 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $6,187,000 after buying an additional 46,089 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.55% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

ALLETE Trading Down 0.0 %

ALE stock traded down $0.02 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $65.44. The stock had a trading volume of 291,739 shares, compared to its average volume of 375,336. The company's 50-day moving average price is $65.23 and its 200 day moving average price is $64.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.08 and a quick ratio of 0.69. The firm has a market cap of $3.79 billion, a PE ratio of 21.11 and a beta of 0.80. ALLETE, Inc. has a 12-month low of $55.86 and a 12-month high of $65.99.

ALLETE (NYSE:ALE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The utilities provider reported $0.87 earnings per share 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 company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $0.73 dividend. 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 4.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. ALLETE's dividend payout ratio is presently 94.19%.

ALLETE 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.