Stanley Laman Group Ltd. Takes Position in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Stanley Laman Group Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 3,497 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $228,000.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of XEL. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 770.0% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,552,625 shares of the company’s stock worth $405,955,000 after acquiring an additional 6,684,499 shares during the period. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. bought a new position in Xcel Energy in the first quarter worth $80,283,000. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its stake in Xcel Energy by 120.2% during the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,379,615 shares of the company’s stock worth $127,095,000 after buying an additional 1,299,025 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in Xcel Energy by 130.4% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,084,345 shares of the company’s stock valued at $111,325,000 after buying an additional 1,179,823 shares during the period. Finally, Zimmer Partners LP raised its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 1,765.0% in the 1st quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 932,505 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,122,000 after buying an additional 882,505 shares in the last quarter. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:XEL opened at $64.32 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $62.91 and a 200-day moving average of $57.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.97. Xcel Energy Inc. has a twelve month low of $46.79 and a twelve month high of $65.64. The firm has a market cap of $35.74 billion, a PE ratio of 19.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.39.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.57 by ($0.03). Xcel Energy had a net margin of 13.46% and a return on equity of 10.94%. The company had revenue of $3.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.29 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.52 EPS. The company’s revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, October 20th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th were given a $0.548 dividend. This represents a $2.19 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 13th. This is a boost from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Xcel Energy’s payout ratio is 65.77%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

XEL has been the topic of several recent research reports. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Xcel Energy in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $70.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Xcel Energy from $68.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. 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 note on Monday, August 26th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Xcel Energy from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $65.29.

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.