Barclays Lowers Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) Price Target to $69.00

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) had its price objective cut by Barclays from $71.00 to $69.00 in a research report report published on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the stock.

Several other research analysts also recently weighed in on XEL. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $71.00 to $76.00 in a report on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded Xcel Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $70.00 to $72.00 in a report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.50.

Xcel Energy Trading Up 0.8 %

Xcel Energy stock opened at $66.61 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $38.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.42. Xcel Energy has a 1 year low of $46.79 and a 1 year high of $73.38. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $68.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $63.90. 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 (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). Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.76% and a net margin of 13.67%. The company had revenue of $3.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.93 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.23 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Xcel Energy will post 3.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.5475 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 6th. This represents a $2.19 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.29%. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.99%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Xcel Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of XEL. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Xcel Energy by 7.0% during the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 189,954 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,404,000 after buying an additional 12,477 shares in the last quarter. ING Groep NV raised its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 85.0% in the 3rd quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 231,482 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,116,000 after acquiring an additional 106,326 shares in the last quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd raised its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 64.4% in the 3rd quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 27,634 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,805,000 after acquiring an additional 10,821 shares in the last quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Xcel Energy by 393.0% in the 3rd quarter. HITE Hedge Asset Management LLC now owns 317,117 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,708,000 after purchasing an additional 252,793 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oak Thistle LLC bought a new stake in Xcel Energy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,433,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

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.