Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Shares Acquired by Empower Advisory Group LLC

Empower Advisory Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 0.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 145,015 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,328 shares during the quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $9,469,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in XEL. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Xcel Energy by 9.5% in the third quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 11,649 shares of the company’s stock valued at $761,000 after buying an additional 1,008 shares during the last quarter. First Heartland Consultants Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Xcel Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $215,000. Aigen Investment Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 384.8% in the third quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP now owns 27,015 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,764,000 after purchasing an additional 21,443 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 301.4% in the third quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 13,028 shares of the company’s stock valued at $851,000 after purchasing an additional 9,782 shares during the period. Finally, OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Xcel Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $239,000. 78.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Xcel Energy Stock Up 0.1 %

Xcel Energy stock opened at $68.65 on Thursday. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $39.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.38. Xcel Energy Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $46.79 and a fifty-two week high of $69.35. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $64.41 and its two-hundred day moving average is $58.94.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.26 by ($0.01). Xcel Energy had a net margin of 13.67% and a return on equity of 10.76%. The firm had revenue of $3.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.93 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.23 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

XEL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. KeyCorp boosted their target price on Xcel Energy from $69.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Jefferies Financial Group raised Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $71.00 to $76.00 in a report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays upped their price objective on Xcel Energy from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Argus raised Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on Xcel Energy from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Xcel Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $66.38.

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.