Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Shares Acquired by Pictet Asset Management Holding SA

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 236.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,878,279 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,429,353 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA owned approximately 0.85% of Xcel Energy worth $329,381,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 73,831,988 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,985,136,000 after purchasing an additional 953,002 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 6.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 37,143,025 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,445,477,000 after acquiring an additional 2,323,448 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in Xcel Energy by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 19,291,149 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,302,538,000 after purchasing an additional 1,022,194 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Xcel Energy by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,562,103 shares of the company’s stock valued at $952,091,000 after purchasing an additional 262,191 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in Xcel Energy by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,777,002 shares of the company’s stock valued at $255,023,000 after purchasing an additional 11,529 shares during the period. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

XEL has been the subject of several recent research reports. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $71.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $80.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Xcel Energy from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Finally, KeyCorp raised their price objective on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Xcel Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72.30.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

XEL stock opened at $69.32 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $68.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $67.18. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 12-month low of $51.97 and a 12-month high of $73.38. The firm has a market cap of $39.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.37. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share (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%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 EPS for the current year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, April 20th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 66.28%.

Insider Activity at Xcel Energy

In other Xcel Energy news, Director Devin W. Stockfish purchased 2,170 shares of Xcel Energy stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $68.93 per share, for a total transaction of $149,578.10. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $207,272.51. The trade was a 259.26 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.