Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Shares Sold by Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund decreased its holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 30.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 164,435 shares of the company’s stock after selling 73,084 shares during the period. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $8,838,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Xcel Energy in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Heritage Wealth Advisors purchased a new stake in Xcel Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Xcel Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Xcel Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Finally, Capital Analysts LLC increased its stake in Xcel Energy by 293.6% in the fourth quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 433 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 323 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of XEL traded up $0.20 on Friday, hitting $54.28. 2,353,946 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,526,133. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.37. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $54.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $55.72. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 1 year low of $46.79 and a 1 year high of $65.62.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $3.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.12 billion. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 13.36% and a return on equity of 11.03%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.76 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Xcel Energy Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, July 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.5475 per share. This represents a $2.19 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on XEL. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. KeyCorp dropped their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $68.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $54.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $62.00.

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.