Victory Capital Management Inc. Sells 112,659 Shares of ALLETE, Inc. (NYSE:ALE)

Victory Capital Management Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of ALLETE, Inc. (NYSE:ALE - Free Report) by 43.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 144,106 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 112,659 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. owned about 0.25% of ALLETE worth $9,250,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ALE. Millennium Management LLC lifted its stake in ALLETE by 955.1% during the second quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 897,622 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $55,967,000 after buying an additional 812,548 shares in the last quarter. Alpine Associates Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of ALLETE in the second quarter valued at $21,985,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its position in shares of ALLETE by 6,668.6% in the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 239,204 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $14,941,000 after buying an additional 235,670 shares during the period. Water Island Capital LLC acquired a new position in ALLETE during the second quarter valued at $11,583,000. Finally, Gabelli Funds LLC boosted its position in ALLETE by 59.1% during the 2nd quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 441,564 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $27,532,000 after acquiring an additional 164,064 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.55% of the company's stock.

ALLETE Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of ALE traded up $0.56 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $64.91. 444,686 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 353,097. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 1.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. ALLETE, Inc. has a twelve month low of $54.71 and a twelve month high of $65.86. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $64.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $63.66. The stock has a market cap of $3.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.80 and a beta of 0.80.

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

ALLETE Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a $0.705 dividend. This is a positive change from ALLETE's previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.34%. ALLETE's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 90.38%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on ALE shares. Sidoti upgraded shares of ALLETE from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of ALLETE in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued a "hold" rating on the stock. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, ALLETE currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $62.00.

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.