New York State Common Retirement Fund Sells 9,000 Shares of Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT)

New York State Common Retirement Fund reduced its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy Co. (NASDAQ:LNT - Free Report) by 7.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 107,736 shares of the company's stock after selling 9,000 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund's holdings in Alliant Energy were worth $6,372,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in LNT. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy by 7,083.3% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 431 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 425 shares during the period. JNBA Financial Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of Alliant Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. ORG Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Alliant Energy by 517.0% in the 4th quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 617 shares of the company's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 517 shares in the last quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co boosted its holdings in Alliant Energy by 251.2% in the fourth quarter. WASHINGTON TRUST Co now owns 878 shares of the company's stock valued at $52,000 after purchasing an additional 628 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Alliant Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $53,000. 79.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Alliant Energy Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of Alliant Energy stock traded up $0.68 on Friday, hitting $64.53. The company had a trading volume of 1,921,833 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,737,103. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $59.94 and a 200-day moving average of $59.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.72. Alliant Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $46.80 and a twelve month high of $64.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.60.

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

Alliant Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st were paid a $0.5075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 31st. This represents a $2.03 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.15%. This is a boost from Alliant Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Alliant Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 75.46%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Alliant Energy from $60.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, February 24th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Alliant Energy from $61.00 to $59.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Guggenheim reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $57.00 price target on shares of Alliant Energy in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Alliant Energy from $66.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Scotiabank downgraded shares of Alliant Energy from a "sector outperform" rating to a "sector perform" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $64.00 to $67.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $63.25.

Alliant Energy 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.