Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. Acquires 1,050 Shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 5.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 20,503 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,050 shares during the quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $1,339,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Xcel Energy Price Performance

Shares of XEL stock opened at $69.46 on Monday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $64.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $59.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.93. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 52-week low of $46.79 and a 52-week high of $69.90.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on XEL shares. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. KeyCorp raised their target price on Xcel Energy from $69.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Xcel Energy from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Barclays upped their price target on Xcel Energy from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective 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. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $66.38.

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.