Banque Cantonale Vaudoise Purchases New Shares in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 7,076 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $462,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Xcel Energy in the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. American National Bank bought a new position in Xcel Energy during the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Kimelman & Baird LLC purchased a new stake in Xcel Energy during the second quarter worth about $35,000. Institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

Xcel Energy stock opened at $71.30 on Friday. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 1-year low of $46.79 and a 1-year high of $71.43. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $40.94 billion, a PE ratio of 21.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.38. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $65.27 and its 200 day simple moving average is $59.63.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.26 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $3.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.93 billion. Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.76% and a net margin of 13.67%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.23 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on XEL shares. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Barclays increased their price objective on Xcel Energy from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Xcel Energy from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Xcel Energy from $68.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $71.00 to $76.00 in a report on Friday, November 1st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.