With 8.1% Earnings Growth, Did Alliant Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:LNT) Outperform The Industry?

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For investors with a long-term horizon, examining earnings trend over time and against industry peers is more insightful than looking at an earnings announcement in one point in time. Investors may find my commentary, albeit very high-level and brief, on Alliant Energy Corporation (NASDAQ:LNT) useful as an attempt to give more color around how Alliant Energy is currently performing.

See our latest analysis for Alliant Energy

How LNT fared against its long-term earnings performance and its industry

LNT's trailing twelve-month earnings (from 31 March 2019) of US$516m has increased by 8.1% compared to the previous year.

Furthermore, this one-year growth rate has exceeded its 5-year annual growth average of 6.2%, indicating the rate at which LNT is growing has accelerated. What's enabled this growth? Well, let’s take a look at whether it is only owing to industry tailwinds, or if Alliant Energy has seen some company-specific growth.

In terms of returns from investment, Alliant Energy has fallen short of achieving a 20% return on equity (ROE), recording 11% instead. However, its return on assets (ROA) of 5.0% exceeds the US Electric Utilities industry of 4.4%, indicating Alliant Energy has used its assets more efficiently. Though, its return on capital (ROC), which also accounts for Alliant Energy’s debt level, has declined over the past 3 years from 5.2% to 4.9%. This correlates with an increase in debt holding, with debt-to-equity ratio rising from 101% to 126% over the past 5 years.

What does this mean?

Though Alliant Energy's past data is helpful, it is only one aspect of my investment thesis. Companies that have performed well in the past, such as Alliant Energy gives investors conviction. However, the next step would be to assess whether the future looks as optimistic. I suggest you continue to research Alliant Energy to get a better picture of the stock by looking at:

1. Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for LNT’s future growth? Take a look at our free research report of analyst consensus for LNT’s outlook.
2. Financial Health: Are LNT’s operations financially sustainable? Balance sheets can be hard to analyze, which is why we’ve done it for you. Check out our financial health checks here.
3. Other High-Performing Stocks: Are there other stocks that provide better prospects with proven track records? Explore our free list of these great stocks here.

NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the trailing twelve months from 31 March 2019. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures.

We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.