Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Purchases 13,076 Shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 5.6% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 246,498 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 13,076 shares during the quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $16,644,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in XEL. Dakota Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 23,130 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,562,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC increased its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 26.0% in the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 731 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. GenTrust LLC increased its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. GenTrust LLC now owns 3,602 shares of the company’s stock valued at $243,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Integris Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Xcel Energy by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Integris Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,323 shares of the company’s stock worth $427,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Xcel Energy by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,242 shares of the company’s stock valued at $624,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the period. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Xcel Energy

In other news, Director Devin W. Stockfish bought 2,170 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $68.93 per share, with a total value of $149,578.10. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 3,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $207,272.51. This represents a 259.26 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

XEL has been the topic of several analyst reports. KeyCorp increased their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $69.00 to $80.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley decreased 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. Barclays dropped their price target on Xcel Energy from $71.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased 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. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $71.10.

Xcel Energy Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of Xcel Energy stock opened at $69.96 on Tuesday. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 52-week low of $51.37 and a 52-week high of $73.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.93. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $67.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $66.86. The firm has a market cap of $40.20 billion, a PE ratio of 20.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.37.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.06). Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.65% and a net margin of 14.40%. On average, analysts predict that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, April 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. This is a boost from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.26%. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.28%.

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.