Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Has $12.82 Million Stock Position in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its position in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 2.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 189,928 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,128 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $12,824,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in XEL. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Xcel Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV lifted its position in Xcel Energy by 21.7% in the 3rd quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 6,899 shares of the company’s stock valued at $451,000 after acquiring an additional 1,231 shares in the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Xcel Energy by 196.1% in the 3rd quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 28,768 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,879,000 after acquiring an additional 19,054 shares in the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. lifted its position in Xcel Energy by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 19,095 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,247,000 after acquiring an additional 978 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP lifted its position in Xcel Energy by 155.8% in the 3rd quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 21,979 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,435,000 after acquiring an additional 13,386 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Devin W. Stockfish acquired 2,170 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $68.93 per share, for a total transaction of $149,578.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,007 shares in the company, valued at $207,272.51. This represents a 259.26 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Xcel Energy stock opened at $68.85 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $67.65 and a 200-day moving average of $66.64. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 1-year low of $50.76 and a 1-year 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 company has a market cap of $39.56 billion, a PE ratio of 20.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.37.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share 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%. As a group, equities 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. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.57 dividend. This is an increase from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.31%. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 66.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

XEL has been the topic of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted 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. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $69.00 to $80.00 in a 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 on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Xcel Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $71.10.

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.