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

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC grew its stake in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 5.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 246,498 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 13,076 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $16,644,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 6.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 37,143,025 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,445,477,000 after buying an additional 2,323,448 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in Xcel Energy by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 15,190,756 shares of the company’s stock valued at $991,956,000 after purchasing an additional 892,740 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position 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 worth $952,091,000 after purchasing an additional 262,191 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Xcel Energy by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,777,002 shares of the company’s stock worth $255,023,000 after purchasing an additional 11,529 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,625,848 shares of the company’s stock valued at $244,817,000 after buying an additional 208,233 shares during the last quarter. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Xcel Energy Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of Xcel Energy stock opened at $69.96 on Tuesday. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 12-month low of $51.37 and a 12-month high of $73.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $67.85 and a 200 day simple moving average of $66.86. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last posted 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 return on equity of 10.65% and a net margin of 14.40%. Research analysts expect that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, April 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.26%. This is a positive change from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Xcel Energy’s payout ratio is currently 66.28%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Devin W. Stockfish bought 2,170 shares of Xcel Energy stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $68.93 per share, for a total transaction of $149,578.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $207,272.51. This trade represents a 259.26 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on XEL shares. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on 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. Barclays reduced their target price on 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. raised shares of Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $69.00 to $80.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $71.10.

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.