Covered and compounding — a Dividend Aristocrat. A 3.07% yield on about 68% of trailing earnings is covered, compounding income: $0.5350 a quarter, declared October 15, 2026, payable November 16, 2026, at the $69.66 close on October 23, 2026. Alliant has grown its dividend for 22 consecutive years, is a member of the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats Index, and has paid common dividends for 324 consecutive quarters since 1946. The payout is high for a utility, but the record behind it is long.
Key risk: The 68% trailing payout leaves less room than a 55% payer: an Iowa or Wisconsin rate outcome or an earnings miss would push it toward 75% before the board acts, and the shares are down from their $78.81 July 2026 high.
Changes if: Trailing payout pushes past ~75%, the 22-year increase streak breaks, or the dividend is held flat for a full year. A cut would move this card to warn immediately.
- ✓Payout-coverage check: About 68% of trailing earnings — $2.14 indicated against trailing EPS near $3.14. Covered, at the high end of the comfortable utility range, with roughly a third of earnings retained.
- ✓Dividend growth check: 22 consecutive years of increases, averaging about 6% a year over the past 5 years, and membership in the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats Index. Dividends have been paid for 324 consecutive quarters since 1946 — growth in the record and in the recent payout.
- ✓Declaration check: The current rate is confirmed by the October 15, 2026 declaration — $0.5350, payable November 16, 2026, to shareowners of record October 30, 2026 — not carried forward from an older announcement.
What this grade doesn't say: It screens the dividend only — covered, real, compounding. It says nothing about valuation or price: a well-covered payer can still be overpriced, and its price can still fall.