Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Shares Acquired by Centre Asset Management LLC

Centre Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 7.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 4,098 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 284 shares during the period. Centre Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $277,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of XEL. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 6.7% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 37,143,025 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,445,477,000 after buying an additional 2,323,448 shares in the last quarter. Brookfield Corp ON lifted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 520.1% in the third quarter. Brookfield Corp ON now owns 2,509,031 shares of the company’s stock valued at $163,840,000 after purchasing an additional 2,104,405 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. lifted its stake in Xcel Energy by 120.2% in the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,379,615 shares of the company’s stock valued at $127,095,000 after buying an additional 1,299,025 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 130.4% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,084,345 shares of the company’s stock valued at $111,325,000 after acquiring an additional 1,179,823 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Merewether Investment Management LP purchased a new position in Xcel Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $64,301,000. 78.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on XEL shares. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $71.00 to $76.00 in a report on Friday, November 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $69.00 to $80.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. KeyCorp raised their price objective on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Xcel Energy from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.17.

Xcel Energy Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ XEL traded up $0.25 on Friday, hitting $67.11. The company had a trading volume of 276,614 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,513,138. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 12-month low of $46.79 and a 12-month high of $73.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.91, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.41. The business has a 50 day moving average of $68.41 and a two-hundred day moving average of $62.56.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by ($0.01). Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.76% and a net margin of 13.67%. The company had revenue of $3.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.23 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Investors of record on Monday, January 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.5475 per share. This represents a $2.19 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.26%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 6th. Xcel Energy’s payout ratio is 64.99%.

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.