Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) Sees Strong Trading Volume – What’s Next?

Shares of Alliant Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:LNT) saw strong trading volume on Thursday . 3,388,588 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 27% from the previous session’s volume of 2,665,170 shares.The stock last traded at $71.6790 and had previously closed at $71.26.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on LNT shares. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and set a $78.00 target price (up from $72.00) on shares of Alliant Energy in a research note on Monday. HSBC raised shares of Alliant Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Mizuho set a $73.00 target price on shares of Alliant Energy in a research report on Monday. Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $76.00 price target on shares of Alliant Energy in a report on Monday, December 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Alliant Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 21st. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.50.

Alliant Energy Stock Up 0.3%

The stock has a market cap of $18.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $67.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $66.65.

Alliant Energy (NASDAQ:LNT) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 19th. The company reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.58 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $673.11 million. Alliant Energy had a return on equity of 11.51% and a net margin of 18.57%.The business’s revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.70 earnings per share. Alliant Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.360-3.460 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Alliant Energy Corporation will post 3.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Alliant Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th were paid a dividend of $0.535 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 30th. This represents a $2.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. This is an increase from Alliant Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.51. Alliant Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.94%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Alliant Energy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Alliant Energy by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 33,785,294 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,196,382,000 after purchasing an additional 383,612 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Alliant Energy by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 11,134,938 shares of the company’s stock worth $723,882,000 after buying an additional 223,793 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in shares of Alliant Energy by 799.3% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 8,393,496 shares of the company’s stock worth $545,662,000 after acquiring an additional 7,460,117 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in shares of Alliant Energy by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 7,173,906 shares of the company’s stock worth $466,376,000 after acquiring an additional 167,581 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Alliant Energy by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,071,908 shares of the company’s stock valued at $458,071,000 after acquiring an additional 128,998 shares in the last quarter. 79.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Alliant Energy

Alliant Energy Corporation (NASDAQ: LNT) is a publicly traded energy holding company headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin, that provides regulated electric and natural gas utility services in the American Midwest. The company serves customers primarily in Wisconsin and Iowa through its regulated utility subsidiaries and operates as an integrated provider responsible for generation, transmission and distribution of energy to residential, commercial and industrial customers.

Alliant Energy’s core activities include operating and maintaining electric generation assets, managing the regional transmission and distribution network, and delivering natural gas service to its franchise territories.