Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Stock Position Decreased by Franklin Resources Inc.

Franklin Resources Inc. lowered its holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 1.6% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 4,884,735 shares of the company’s stock after selling 80,596 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $307,836,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Integris Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Integris Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,163 shares of the company’s stock worth $402,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the period. Bond & Devick Financial Network Inc. grew its position in Xcel Energy by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Bond & Devick Financial Network Inc. now owns 15,972 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,043,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 5.9% in the third quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 3,037 shares of the company’s stock valued at $209,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the period. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 4.3% during the second quarter. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC now owns 4,413 shares of the company’s stock valued at $236,000 after buying an additional 182 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. boosted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 2.9% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 6,591 shares of the company’s stock worth $430,000 after buying an additional 183 shares during the period. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on XEL shares. Argus raised Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $80.00 in a report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $71.00 to $76.00 in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $68.62.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

XEL opened at $68.12 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $39.12 billion, a PE ratio of 20.21, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $67.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $61.40. Xcel Energy Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $46.79 and a fifty-two week high of $73.38.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.26 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $3.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.93 billion. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 13.67% and a return on equity of 10.76%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.23 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.