Altshuler Shaham Ltd Takes Position in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Altshuler Shaham Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor acquired 1,551 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $105,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in shares of Xcel Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Xcel Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in Xcel Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. MCF Advisors LLC grew its position in 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 buying an additional 504 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Financial Corp IN bought a new position in Xcel Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $46,000. Institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Devin W. Stockfish acquired 2,170 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were purchased at an average price 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 $207,272.51. The trade was a 259.26 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on XEL shares. Barclays boosted their price objective on Xcel Energy from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, March 31st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target 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. Morgan Stanley raised 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. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $73.00.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

XEL stock opened at $69.10 on Thursday. 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 has a market cap of $39.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.39. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $69.26 and its 200 day moving average is $67.73. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 52 week low of $51.97 and a 52 week high of $73.38.

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%. Research analysts predict that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, April 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.30%. This is an increase from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Xcel Energy’s payout ratio 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.