Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) Sets New 52-Week High at $64.43

Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $64.43 and last traded at $63.71, with a volume of 270541 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $63.85.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on XEL shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Xcel Energy from $62.00 to $68.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Xcel Energy from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Argus upgraded Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, August 26th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Xcel Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $62.92.

Xcel Energy Stock Up 0.3 %

The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $58.32 and its 200 day moving average is $55.39. The stock has a market cap of $35.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.38.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by ($0.03). Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.94% and a net margin of 13.46%. The business had revenue of $3.03 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.29 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.52 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.55 EPS for the current year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, October 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be paid a $0.548 dividend. This is an increase from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $2.19 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.42%. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 65.77%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. ProShare Advisors LLC grew its position in Xcel Energy by 23.2% during the first quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 643,986 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,614,000 after buying an additional 121,118 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH lifted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 7.5% in the 4th quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 419,106 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,947,000 after acquiring an additional 29,307 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 1,625,530 shares of the company’s stock worth $87,372,000 after acquiring an additional 38,653 shares during the period. Focus Financial Network Inc. ADV acquired a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $9,120,000. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 24.8% during the first quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 100,969 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,427,000 after purchasing an additional 20,068 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

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.