Evercore ISI Issues Positive Forecast for Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) Stock Price

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) had its price objective upped by Evercore ISI from $74.00 to $77.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an outperform rating on the stock.

Several other brokerages have also recently weighed in on XEL. Barclays increased their target price on Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Morgan Stanley set a $79.00 target price on shares of Xcel Energy and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $69.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $76.00.

Xcel Energy Stock Up 0.0 %

XEL opened at $70.70 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $40.78 billion, a PE ratio of 20.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. Xcel Energy has a 52 week low of $51.97 and a 52 week high of $73.38. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $69.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $68.18.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $0.84 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.95 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $3.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.93 billion. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 14.40% and a return on equity of 10.65%. The firm’s revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.88 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Xcel Energy will post 3.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, April 20th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.22%. This is a boost from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 67.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Xcel Energy news, Director Devin W. Stockfish purchased 2,170 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $68.93 per share, with a total value of $149,578.10. Following the completion of the acquisition, 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Dakota Wealth Management lifted its holdings in Xcel Energy by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 23,130 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,562,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the period. Rothschild Investment LLC lifted its holdings in Xcel Energy by 26.0% in the fourth quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 731 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the period. GenTrust LLC increased its position in Xcel Energy by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. GenTrust LLC now owns 3,602 shares of the company’s stock worth $243,000 after buying an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV increased its position in Xcel Energy by 23.2% in the fourth quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 827 shares of the company’s stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Integris Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Xcel Energy by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Integris Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,323 shares of the company’s stock worth $427,000 after buying an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. 78.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.