Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) Price Target Raised to $73.00

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) had its price objective upped by UBS Group from $70.00 to $73.00 in a research report report published on Friday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on XEL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective 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. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on Xcel Energy from $71.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Three 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 a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72.30.

Xcel Energy Trading Down 1.4 %

XEL stock opened at $69.11 on Friday. Xcel Energy has a 12-month low of $51.58 and a 12-month high of $73.38. The business’s 50-day moving average is $68.21 and its 200 day moving average is $67.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The stock has a market cap of $39.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.09, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.37.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 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%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Xcel Energy will post 3.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, April 20th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.30%. This is an increase from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 66.28%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Devin W. Stockfish bought 2,170 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $68.93 per share, for a total transaction of $149,578.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,007 shares of the company’s stock, 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 accessible through this link. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in XEL. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 4.9% during the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 124,967 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,160,000 after acquiring an additional 5,799 shares during the last quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC boosted its stake in Xcel Energy by 9.6% during the 3rd quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 75,673 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,944,000 after purchasing an additional 6,620 shares during the period. Caprock Group LLC grew its position in Xcel Energy by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 7,393 shares of the company’s stock worth $487,000 after purchasing an additional 339 shares during the last quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc increased its stake in Xcel Energy by 7.9% in the third quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 12,974 shares of the company’s stock valued at $847,000 after purchasing an additional 946 shares during the period. Finally, Banque Cantonale Vaudoise purchased a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy in the third quarter valued at about $462,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

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.