Bailard Inc. Acquires 370 Shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Bailard Inc. increased its holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 3.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 12,837 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 370 shares during the period. Bailard Inc.’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $867,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Dakota Wealth Management grew its stake in Xcel Energy by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 23,130 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,562,000 after buying an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 26.0% during the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 731 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the period. GenTrust LLC boosted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. GenTrust LLC now owns 3,602 shares of the company’s stock worth $243,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Integris Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Integris Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,323 shares of the company’s stock worth $427,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bond & Devick Financial Network Inc. increased its stake in Xcel Energy by 1.1% in the third quarter. Bond & Devick Financial Network Inc. now owns 15,972 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,043,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Xcel Energy Stock Down 0.3 %

NASDAQ:XEL opened at $71.90 on Tuesday. Xcel Energy Inc. has a one year low of $46.79 and a one year high of $73.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The company has a market cap of $41.29 billion, a PE ratio of 20.90, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.43. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $67.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $66.26.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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, research analysts anticipate 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Xcel Energy’s payout ratio is 66.28%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on XEL. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $71.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Xcel Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $69.91.

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.