Apollon Wealth Management LLC Trims Holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Apollon Wealth Management LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 18.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 20,165 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,586 shares during the quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $1,248,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Xcel Energy in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Xcel Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Capital Analysts LLC raised its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 293.6% in the 4th quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 433 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Xcel Energy during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:XEL opened at $54.93 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $53.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $57.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.50, a PEG ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.36. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 12-month low of $46.79 and a 12-month high of $69.71.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.08. Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 11.03% and a net margin of 13.36%. The business had revenue of $3.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.12 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.76 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, April 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a dividend of $0.548 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.19 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.99%. Xcel Energy’s payout ratio is currently 65.77%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on XEL shares. Bank of America lifted their price target on Xcel Energy from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Xcel Energy from $54.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 26th. Wolfe Research raised shares of Xcel Energy from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $58.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 11th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, KeyCorp decreased their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $68.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 19th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Xcel Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $62.83.

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.