Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co Boosts Stake in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co raised its position in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 65.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 155,500 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 61,500 shares during the quarter. Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $10,499,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its stake in Xcel Energy by 236.7% during the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 4,878,279 shares of the company’s stock worth $329,381,000 after buying an additional 3,429,353 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 15.9% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 17,613,239 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,189,246,000 after acquiring an additional 2,422,483 shares in the last quarter. Brookfield Corp ON increased its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 520.1% during the third 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 during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $83,653,000. Finally, Reaves W H & Co. Inc. boosted its holdings in Xcel Energy by 440.2% in the fourth quarter. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. now owns 1,455,927 shares of the company’s stock valued at $98,304,000 after purchasing an additional 1,186,427 shares during the period. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Devin W. Stockfish purchased 2,170 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $68.93 per share, with a total value of $149,578.10. Following the completion of the acquisition, 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

XEL has been the topic of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Xcel Energy from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, March 31st. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 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 report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Xcel Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $73.00.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

Shares of XEL opened at $67.89 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.82. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 1-year low of $51.97 and a 1-year high of $73.38. The stock has a market cap of $39.01 billion, a PE ratio of 19.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.39. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $68.96 and a 200 day moving average price of $67.47.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last announced 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 EPS for the current year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, April 20th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given 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 3.36%. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 66.28%.

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.