Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Decreases Stock Position in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lowered its position in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 41.0% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 203,488 shares of the company’s stock after selling 141,600 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $10,868,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in XEL. Truist Financial Corp increased its stake in Xcel Energy by 85.0% during the 4th quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 144,788 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,964,000 after buying an additional 66,524 shares during the period. Choreo LLC grew its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 10.1% during the fourth quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 5,010 shares of the company’s stock valued at $310,000 after acquiring an additional 459 shares in the last quarter. Intrust Bank NA increased its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 29.4% during the fourth quarter. Intrust Bank NA now owns 9,081 shares of the company’s stock worth $562,000 after acquiring an additional 2,064 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 37.5% in the 4th quarter. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 10,443 shares of the company’s stock valued at $647,000 after buying an additional 2,850 shares during the period. Finally, Mission Wealth Management LP grew its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 52.0% during the 4th quarter. Mission Wealth Management LP now owns 38,967 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,412,000 after buying an additional 13,330 shares during the last quarter. 78.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on XEL shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded Xcel Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Xcel Energy from $62.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Argus raised shares of Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Xcel Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $62.92.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

XEL stock traded up $0.71 during trading on Thursday, hitting $61.39. The company had a trading volume of 2,940,247 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,302,188. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48. The business has a 50 day moving average of $56.46 and a 200 day moving average of $55.14. Xcel Energy Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $46.79 and a fifty-two week high of $64.25.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.57 by ($0.03). Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 11.00% and a net margin of 13.46%. The company had revenue of $3.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.29 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.52 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, October 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be given a dividend of $0.548 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. This is a boost from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.19 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.57%. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 65.77%.

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.