PrairieView Partners LLC Raises Stake in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

PrairieView Partners LLC grew its position in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 13.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,221 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 600 shares during the period. PrairieView Partners LLC’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $352,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in XEL. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Xcel Energy during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new stake in Xcel Energy in the third quarter valued at $33,000. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. MCF Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 566.3% during the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 593 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 504 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Financial Corp IN bought a new position in Xcel Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $46,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

XEL has been the topic of a number of research reports. KeyCorp increased their price objective on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $71.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $71.00 to $76.00 in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.91.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

Xcel Energy stock opened at $67.40 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.59, a PEG ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.43. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 1 year low of $46.79 and a 1 year high of $73.38. The business has a 50-day moving average of $67.19 and a 200-day moving average of $65.15. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42.

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

Xcel Energy Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 6th were paid a $0.5475 dividend. This represents a $2.19 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.25%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, January 6th. Xcel Energy’s payout ratio is 63.66%.

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.