Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the ten ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $73.00.

Several research firms have recently weighed in on XEL. KeyCorp upped their price objective on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Xcel Energy from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th.

Insider Activity

In other Xcel Energy news, Director Devin W. Stockfish bought 2,170 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $68.93 per share, with a total value of $149,578.10. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 3,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $207,272.51. The trade was a 259.26 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Xcel Energy

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Bank of America Corp DE raised its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 43.6% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 20,762,745 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,401,901,000 after purchasing an additional 6,306,380 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Xcel Energy by 118.3% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,608,044 shares of the company’s stock valued at $446,175,000 after acquiring an additional 3,581,436 shares during the period. Zimmer Partners LP raised its holdings in Xcel Energy by 1,625.7% in the 4th quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 3,667,200 shares of the company’s stock valued at $247,609,000 after acquiring an additional 3,454,700 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA boosted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 236.7% during the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 4,878,279 shares of the company’s stock worth $329,381,000 after acquiring an additional 3,429,353 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 379.3% in the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,022,085 shares of the company’s stock valued at $271,578,000 after purchasing an additional 3,182,939 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

NASDAQ XEL opened at $70.72 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.93. Xcel Energy has a 52-week low of $51.97 and a 52-week high of $73.38. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $68.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $67.37. The stock has a market cap of $40.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.56, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.37.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.87 by ($0.06). Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.65% and a net margin of 14.40%. Analysts anticipate that Xcel Energy will post 3.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, April 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.22%. Xcel Energy’s payout ratio is currently 66.28%.

Xcel Energy Company 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.