Berger Financial Group Inc Boosts Holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Berger Financial Group Inc boosted its stake in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Free Report) by 42.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 38,217 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 11,415 shares during the quarter. Berger Financial Group Inc's holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $2,580,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of XEL. Hodges Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 447.1% in the 4th quarter. Hodges Capital Management Inc. now owns 51,396 shares of the company's stock worth $3,470,000 after purchasing an additional 42,001 shares during the period. Atomi Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of Xcel Energy in the 4th quarter worth $278,000. GEN Financial Management INC. bought a new position in shares of Xcel Energy in the 4th quarter worth $301,000. Oak Thistle LLC purchased a new stake in Xcel Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,433,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in Xcel Energy by 35.8% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 14,825 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,001,000 after purchasing an additional 3,905 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.38% of the company's stock.

Xcel Energy Trading Up 0.0 %

NASDAQ:XEL traded up $0.03 on Wednesday, reaching $70.70. 4,467,722 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,574,902. The business has a fifty day moving average of $69.61 and a 200-day moving average of $68.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.39. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 52-week low of $51.97 and a 52-week high of $73.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.95 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $3.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.93 billion. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 14.40% and a return on equity of 10.65%. The business's revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.88 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, April 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were given a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Xcel Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.22%. Xcel Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.06%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on XEL shares. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company set a $78.00 price target on shares of Xcel Energy and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Morgan Stanley set a $79.00 price target on shares of Xcel Energy and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $69.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $76.00.

Insider Transactions at Xcel Energy

In other news, Director Devin W. Stockfish acquired 2,170 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $68.93 per share, for a total transaction of $149,578.10. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,007 shares in the company, valued at $207,272.51. This represents a 259.26 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Xcel Energy Profile

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.