Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Shares Bought by Los Angeles Capital Management LLC

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 725.1% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 907,030 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 797,096 shares during the quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC owned 0.16% of Xcel Energy worth $48,444,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of XEL. Savant Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 112.7% during the 2nd quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 31,771 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,697,000 after acquiring an additional 16,834 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its stake in Xcel Energy by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 60,652 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,239,000 after buying an additional 2,011 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 1.7% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 161,034 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,601,000 after acquiring an additional 2,680 shares during the last quarter. Denver PWM LLC acquired a new position in Xcel Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $63,000. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI boosted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 89.4% during the second quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,534,971 shares of the company’s stock worth $80,478,000 after purchasing an additional 724,558 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on XEL. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Xcel Energy from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $62.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Argus raised Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $62.92.

Xcel Energy Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of XEL traded down $0.55 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $62.91. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,731,757 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,280,849. The company has a 50 day moving average of $57.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $55.33. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 1-year low of $46.79 and a 1-year high of $64.25. The firm has a market cap of $34.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $3.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.29 billion. Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.94% and a net margin of 13.46%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.52 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, October 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be issued a $0.548 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. This is an increase from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.19 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.48%. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 65.77%.

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.