Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Stock Rated "Buy" by Sell-Side Analysts

Key Points

• Analysts remain bullish on Xcel Energy: 16 of 18 analysts rate the stock “Buy,” one rates it “Hold,” and one rates it “Strong Buy.” The average 12-month price target is $90.21.
• Xcel Energy reported quarterly EPS of $0.93, beating consensus estimates of $0.79, although revenue fell 5.1% year over year to $3.12 billion. Analysts expect full-year EPS of $4.13.
• The company pays a quarterly dividend of $0.5925, equivalent to an annualized $2.37 and a 3.0% yield. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the stock.

Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Buy" from the eighteen analysts that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $90.21.

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays dropped their price objective on Xcel Energy from $90.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Scotiabank began coverage on Xcel Energy in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. They set a "sector outperform" rating and a $77.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings downgraded Xcel Energy from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Monday. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Xcel Energy from $83.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on Xcel Energy from $91.00 to $96.00 in a research report on Monday, July 6th.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

Shares of XEL opened at $78.05 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $48.75 billion, a PE ratio of 21.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.36. Xcel Energy has a one year low of $68.72 and a one year high of $84.23. 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 company's fifty day moving average price is $74.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $77.86.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.14. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 15.28% and a return on equity of 10.65%. The firm had revenue of $3.12 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.54 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.59 EPS. The business's revenue was down 5.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Xcel Energy will post 4.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Xcel Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th were given a $0.5925 dividend. This represents a $2.37 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 15th. Xcel Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 64.93%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Leeward Investments LLC MA lifted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 7.5% in the third quarter. Leeward Investments LLC MA now owns 114,558 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,074,000 after buying an additional 7,950 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC grew its position in Xcel Energy by 43.2% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 12,930 shares of the company's stock worth $911,000 after buying an additional 3,899 shares in the last quarter. Bond & Devick Financial Network Inc. grew its position in Xcel Energy by 1.3% during the third quarter. Bond & Devick Financial Network Inc. now owns 19,863 shares of the company's stock worth $1,400,000 after buying an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC increased its stake in Xcel Energy by 5.2% during the third quarter. Sowell Financial Services LLC now owns 4,876 shares of the company's stock valued at $344,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the period. Finally, Evergreen Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Xcel Energy by 20.0% during the third quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 6,073 shares of the company's stock valued at $432,000 after acquiring an additional 1,011 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company's stock.

Xcel Energy Company Profile

Xcel Energy Inc is a public utility holding company that provides electricity and natural gas services to residential, commercial, and industrial customers. Its operations include the generation, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity, as well as the distribution and sale of natural gas.

The company serves customers across Colorado, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Texas, and Wisconsin through operating companies including Northern States Power, Public Service Company of Colorado, Southwestern Public Service Company, and NSP-Wisconsin.

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