Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Shares Bought by Aveo Capital Partners LLC

Aveo Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 7.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 6,941 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 476 shares during the period. Aveo Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $469,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 976,144 shares of the company’s stock worth $65,909,000 after buying an additional 11,299 shares during the period. DeDora Capital Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. DeDora Capital Inc. now owns 20,126 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,359,000 after buying an additional 396 shares during the period. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Chevy Chase Trust Holdings LLC now owns 302,728 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,440,000 after buying an additional 2,619 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 237,789 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,203,000 after buying an additional 7,852 shares during the period. Finally, Avestar Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 10.8% during the fourth quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 3,532 shares of the company’s stock worth $238,000 after buying an additional 343 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of Xcel Energy stock opened at $68.61 on Friday. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 12-month low of $46.79 and a 12-month high of $73.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The stock has a market cap of $39.40 billion, a PE ratio of 19.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a 50-day moving average of $67.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $65.27.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.06). Xcel Energy had a net margin of 14.40% and a return on equity of 10.65%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 6th were issued a $0.5475 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, January 6th. This represents a $2.19 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.19%. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.66%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

XEL has been the subject of several recent research reports. KeyCorp increased their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $71.00 to $76.00 in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Xcel Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $69.91.

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.