Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) Given New $83.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley lowered Xcel Energy’s price target from $89 to $83 while maintaining an “equal weight” rating, implying approximately 14.3% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive: Xcel has an average “Buy” rating and a consensus price target of $92.06, with targets ranging from $88 to $102 among other firms.
• Xcel shares fell 1.4% to $72.60. Although quarterly EPS of $0.93 exceeded expectations, revenue declined 5.1% year over year to $3.12 billion and missed analyst estimates.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report) had its price objective cut by research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $89.00 to $83.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "equal weight" rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley's target price points to a potential upside of 14.32% from the company's previous close.

A number of other research firms have also commented on XEL. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $87.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $101.00 price target on Xcel Energy in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $91.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on Xcel Energy from $94.00 to $88.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, New Street Research set a $91.00 price target on shares of Xcel Energy in a report on Tuesday, June 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Xcel Energy currently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $92.06.

Xcel Energy Trading Down 1.4%

XEL stock traded down $1.03 on Friday, hitting $72.60. 1,588,231 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,194,797. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.39. Xcel Energy has a twelve month low of $71.79 and a twelve month high of $84.23. The business's fifty day moving average is $77.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $79.16.

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Xcel Energy

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Xcel Energy by 11.6% during the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 47,995 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,854,000 after purchasing an additional 4,983 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 118.3% in the second quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 505,096 shares of the company's stock worth $40,559,000 after purchasing an additional 273,749 shares during the period. MCF Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Xcel Energy by 125.2% during the second quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 608 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 338 shares during the period. National Pension Service raised its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 6.3% during the second quarter. National Pension Service now owns 803,504 shares of the company's stock valued at $64,521,000 after buying an additional 47,608 shares during the last quarter. Finally, WINTON GROUP Ltd bought a new position in shares of Xcel Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at about $434,000. Institutional investors own 78.38% of the company's stock.

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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