Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Stake Increased by Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 7.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 22,003 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,500 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $1,486,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 6.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 37,143,025 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,445,477,000 after purchasing an additional 2,323,448 shares in the last quarter. Brookfield Corp ON boosted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 520.1% during the 3rd quarter. Brookfield Corp ON now owns 2,509,031 shares of the company’s stock worth $163,840,000 after acquiring an additional 2,104,405 shares in the last quarter. Merewether Investment Management LP bought a new stake in Xcel Energy during the third quarter worth approximately $64,301,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in Xcel Energy by 6.2% during the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 15,190,756 shares of the company’s stock valued at $991,956,000 after purchasing an additional 892,740 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 1,265.6% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 839,146 shares of the company’s stock worth $54,797,000 after buying an additional 777,696 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

NASDAQ XEL opened at $71.90 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $41.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.90, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.43. 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 Inc. has a twelve month low of $46.79 and a twelve month high of $73.38. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $67.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $66.26.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.87 by ($0.06). Xcel Energy had a net margin of 14.40% and a return on equity of 10.65%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, April 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.17%. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $69.00 to $80.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Barclays lowered their target price on Xcel Energy from $71.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Xcel Energy 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.