Algert Global LLC Increases Stock Position in ALLETE, Inc. (NYSE:ALE)

Algert Global LLC raised its stake in shares of ALLETE, Inc. (NYSE:ALE) by 73.3% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 71,018 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 30,030 shares during the quarter. Algert Global LLC’s holdings in ALLETE were worth $4,559,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Cerity Partners LLC raised its holdings in ALLETE by 1.7% in the third quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 27,080 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,738,000 after buying an additional 451 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. increased its position in shares of ALLETE by 28.3% in the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 129,635 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $8,321,000 after acquiring an additional 28,612 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of ALLETE by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 766,343 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $49,192,000 after acquiring an additional 7,739 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of ALLETE by 88.5% during the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 9,763 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $627,000 after acquiring an additional 4,584 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Alpine Associates Management Inc. boosted its position in ALLETE by 12.9% during the 3rd quarter. Alpine Associates Management Inc. now owns 398,047 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $25,551,000 after purchasing an additional 45,447 shares during the period. 76.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on ALE shares. Sidoti raised ALLETE from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. StockNews.com began coverage on ALLETE in a report on Saturday. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, ALLETE presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $62.00.

ALLETE Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ALE opened at $64.93 on Monday. 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 fifty-two week low of $54.71 and a fifty-two week high of $65.86. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $64.31 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $63.67. The firm has a market cap of $3.75 billion, a PE ratio of 20.81 and a beta of 0.80.

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

ALLETE Increases Dividend

The business 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 dividend of $0.705 per share. This is a boost from ALLETE’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.70. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.34%. ALLETE’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 90.38%.

About ALLETE

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.