Associated Banc Corp Sells 13,782 Shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Associated Banc Corp lessened its stake in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 4.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 295,161 shares of the company’s stock after selling 13,782 shares during the period. Associated Banc Corp’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $19,929,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy in the third quarter worth $25,000. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 5.4% in the third quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 19,095 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,247,000 after purchasing an additional 978 shares during the last quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy in the third quarter worth $239,000. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 9.5% in the third quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 11,649 shares of the company’s stock worth $761,000 after purchasing an additional 1,008 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 5.4% in the third quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 20,503 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,339,000 after purchasing an additional 1,050 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

Xcel Energy stock opened at $69.75 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $67.75 and its 200-day moving average price is $66.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.93. The stock has a market cap of $40.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.37. Xcel Energy Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $51.37 and a fifty-two week high of $73.38.

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

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, April 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.27%. This is a boost from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 66.28%.

Insider Activity

In other Xcel Energy news, Director Devin W. Stockfish bought 2,170 shares of Xcel Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $68.93 per share, with a total value of $149,578.10. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 3,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,272.51. This trade represents a 259.26 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on XEL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price 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. Finally, 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. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Xcel Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $71.10.

About Xcel Energy

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.