Vestcor Inc Sells 1,324 Shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Vestcor Inc lessened its stake in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 2.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 61,321 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,324 shares during the quarter. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $4,140,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Burkehill Global Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the fourth quarter worth $67,520,000. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 13.9% during the fourth quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 34,942 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,359,000 after buying an additional 4,264 shares during the last quarter. Essential Planning LLC. bought a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the fourth quarter worth $4,358,000. Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP now owns 234,178 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,812,000 after purchasing an additional 10,096 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,242 shares of the company’s stock worth $624,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Xcel Energy

In other Xcel Energy news, Director Devin W. Stockfish purchased 2,170 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $68.93 per share, with a total value of $149,578.10. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,272.51. The trade was a 259.26 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

XEL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $71.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $71.10.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

Shares of Xcel Energy stock opened at $68.67 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $39.45 billion, a PE ratio of 19.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.37. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 12-month low of $50.76 and a 12-month high of $73.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $67.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $66.65.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.06). Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.65% and a net margin of 14.40%. As a group, equities analysts expect that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 EPS for the current year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, April 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.32%. This is a boost from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 66.28%.

Xcel Energy Profile

Xcel Energy Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the generation, purchasing, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity. It operates through Regulated Electric Utility, Regulated Natural Gas Utility, and All Other segments. The company generates electricity through wind, nuclear, hydroelectric, biomass, and solar energy sources, as well as coal, natural gas, oil, wood, and refuse-derived fuels.