Global Retirement Partners LLC Acquires 283 Shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 7.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 3,943 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 283 shares during the quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $266,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Hodges Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 447.1% in the fourth quarter. Hodges Capital Management Inc. now owns 51,396 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,470,000 after purchasing an additional 42,001 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its position in Xcel Energy by 7.0% in the 3rd quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 189,954 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,404,000 after buying an additional 12,477 shares during the last quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Xcel Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $278,000. ING Groep NV lifted its stake in Xcel Energy by 85.0% during the 3rd quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 231,482 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,116,000 after acquiring an additional 106,326 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GEN Financial Management INC. purchased a new position in Xcel Energy during the 4th quarter worth $301,000. Institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on XEL. KeyCorp raised their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $71.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $71.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $69.91.

Xcel Energy Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of XEL opened at $70.78 on Tuesday. Xcel Energy Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $46.79 and a fifty-two week high of $73.38. The business has a 50-day moving average of $67.15 and a 200 day moving average of $65.82. The firm has a market cap of $40.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.43. 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 (NASDAQ:XEL) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 14.40% and a return on equity of 10.65%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 EPS for the current year.

Xcel Energy Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 6th were given a dividend of $0.5475 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, January 6th. This represents a $2.19 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.09%. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.66%.

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.