Wall Street Zen Upgrades Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) to Hold

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Xcel Energy from “sell” to “hold,” while the broader analyst consensus remains “buy” with an average price target of $92.56.
• Xcel Energy’s latest quarterly results beat earnings expectations, reporting $0.93 in EPS versus the $0.79 consensus, although revenue fell 5.1% year over year to $3.12 billion.
• Institutional ownership is substantial at 78.38%, with major investors including BlackRock, GQG Partners and Barrow Hanley acquiring or holding significant stakes.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report) was upgraded by Wall Street Zen from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on XEL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Xcel Energy from $91.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. New Street Research set a $91.00 price target on Xcel Energy in a research report on Tuesday, June 23rd. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Xcel Energy from $95.00 to $92.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Mizuho set a $92.00 price objective on Xcel Energy in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Truist Financial cut their price objective on Xcel Energy from $94.00 to $88.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $92.56.

Xcel Energy Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:XEL opened at $69.80 on Friday. The company's 50-day moving average price is $76.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $78.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.62. Xcel Energy has a one year low of $68.72 and a one year high of $84.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.60 billion, a PE ratio of 19.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.35 and a beta of 0.39.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $3.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.54 billion. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 15.28% and a return on equity of 10.65%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.59 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Xcel Energy will post 4.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Xcel Energy

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in Xcel Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at $4,890,136,000. GQG Partners LLC acquired a new position in Xcel Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at $891,688,000. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC bought a new position in Xcel Energy during the 2nd quarter worth $708,086,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in Xcel Energy during the 2nd quarter worth $503,543,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the second quarter worth $433,927,000. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Xcel Energy Company Profile

Xcel Energy Inc is a Minneapolis-based electric and natural gas utility holding company that serves customers across parts of Colorado, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Texas and Wisconsin. Through its operating companies, Xcel provides electricity generation, transmission and distribution, as well as natural gas distribution and related energy services.

The company operates a diversified generating fleet that includes wind, solar, hydroelectric, nuclear, natural gas and other resources.

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