Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Shares Sold by Martingale Asset Management L P

Martingale Asset Management L P decreased its stake in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 0.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 130,674 shares of the company’s stock after selling 906 shares during the period. Martingale Asset Management L P’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $8,823,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Xcel Energy by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 73,831,988 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,985,136,000 after acquiring an additional 953,002 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in Xcel Energy by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 19,291,149 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,302,538,000 after acquiring an additional 1,022,194 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its position in Xcel Energy by 15.9% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 17,613,239 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,189,246,000 after acquiring an additional 2,422,483 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Xcel Energy by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,178,956 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,029,223,000 after acquiring an additional 616,853 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC raised its position in Xcel Energy by 118.3% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,608,044 shares of the company’s stock worth $446,175,000 after acquiring an additional 3,581,436 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Devin W. Stockfish purchased 2,170 shares of Xcel Energy stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $68.93 per share, with a total value of $149,578.10. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,007 shares in the company, valued at $207,272.51. The trade was a 259.26 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

Shares of XEL opened at $68.58 on Thursday. Xcel Energy Inc. has a one year low of $51.97 and a one year high of $73.38. The company has a 50-day moving average of $69.03 and a two-hundred day moving average of $67.57. The stock has a market cap of $39.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.94, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 EPS 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%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, April 20th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This is an increase from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.32%. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 66.28%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. UBS Group lifted 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. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 31st. Morgan Stanley upped 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 note on Thursday, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Xcel Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $73.00.

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.