Mizuho Securities USA LLC Acquires 18,274 Shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 50.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 54,425 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 18,274 shares during the quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $3,675,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hodges Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Xcel Energy by 447.1% in the fourth quarter. Hodges Capital Management Inc. now owns 51,396 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,470,000 after acquiring an additional 42,001 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake 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 worth $12,404,000 after buying an additional 12,477 shares during the last quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in Xcel Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $278,000. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd grew its stake in Xcel Energy by 64.4% during the third quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 27,634 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,805,000 after buying an additional 10,821 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GEN Financial Management INC. bought a new stake in Xcel Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $301,000. Institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on XEL. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Barclays decreased their price target 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.30.

Insider Buying and Selling at Xcel Energy

In other news, Director Devin W. Stockfish purchased 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, with a total value of $149,578.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,007 shares in the company, valued at $207,272.51. This trade represents a 259.26 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

Shares of XEL stock opened at $69.11 on Monday. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 52-week low of $51.58 and a 52-week high of $73.38. The stock has a market cap of $39.71 billion, a PE ratio of 20.09, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.93. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $68.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $67.08.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 14.40% and a return on equity of 10.65%. As a group, analysts forecast that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 EPS for the current 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 is Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.30%. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.28%.

Xcel Energy 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.