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What's in the Cards for Alliant Energy (LNT) in Q2 Earnings?

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Alliant Energy Corp. (LNT - Free Report) will release second-quarter 2017 financial results on Aug 3, after market close. Last quarter, the company reported a negative earnings surprise of 4.44%.

Let’s see how things are shaping up prior to this announcement.

Factors to Consider

The operating expenses of Alliant Energy have been on the rise lately, owing to increasing electric production fuel and purchased power cost. These rising expenses, if incurred in the second quarter also, may adversely impact the earnings of the company.

However, the company is expected to benefit from improving economic conditions in its service territories. As of Jun 2017, the unemployment rate in Wisconsin is one of the lowest in the country.

Moreover, Alliant Energy produces a major chunk of its electricity from coal. Therefore, President Trump’s emphasis on improving coal industry and relaxing the stringent environmental regulations may boost the company’s prospects in the near term.

Earnings Whispers

Our proven model does not conclusively show that Alliant Energy is likely to beat estimates this quarter. That is because a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) for this to happen. But that is not the case here, as you will see below.

Zacks ESP: The company’s Most Accurate estimate stands at 37 cents while the Zacks Consensus Estimate is pegged at 39 cents, resulting in an Earnings ESP of -5.13%. You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Zacks Rank: Alliant Energy carries a Zacks Rank #2, which increases the predictive power of ESP. However, a negative ESP makes surprise prediction difficult.

We caution against stocks with a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell) or 5 (Strong Sell) going into the earnings announcement, especially when the company is seeing a negative estimate revisions.

Stocks to Consider

Here are some companies you may want to consider from the Utility sector. Our proven model shows that they have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this quarter.

NiSource, Inc (NI - Free Report) has an Earnings ESP of +10.00% and carries a Zacks Rank #2. It is slated to report second-quarter 2017 earnings results on Aug 2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The AES Corporation (AES - Free Report) has an Earnings ESP of +20.00% and holds a Zacks Rank #2. It is slated to report second-quarter 2017 earnings results on Aug 8.

ALLETE, Inc. (ALE - Free Report) has an Earnings ESP of +5.36% and holds a Zacks Rank #2. It is slated to report second-quarter 2017 earnings results on Aug 2.

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