Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) Hits New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) shares hit a new 52-week high on Thursday . The company traded as high as $65.88 and last traded at $65.84, with a volume of 491268 shares. The stock had previously closed at $63.05.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on XEL. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 30th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $68.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Xcel Energy in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $70.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $65.54.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

The business’s fifty day moving average price is $63.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $58.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.97. The stock has a market cap of $36.71 billion, a PE ratio of 18.82, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.39.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $3.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.29 billion. Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.94% and a net margin of 13.46%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.52 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Xcel Energy

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in XEL. TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Xcel Energy in the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. American National Bank bought a new stake in Xcel Energy during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC bought a new stake in Xcel Energy during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new stake in Xcel Energy during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Voisard Asset Management Group Inc. bought a new stake in Xcel Energy during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $43,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

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.