Aberdeen Group plc Acquires 15,847 Shares of Xcel Energy Inc. $XEL

Key Points

• Aberdeen Group plc increased its holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. by 8.1%, acquiring an additional 15,847 shares during the second quarter, bringing its total shares to 210,696 valued at approximately $14.35 million.
• Xcel Energy's stock currently has a consensus target price of $81.91, with nine analysts giving it a Buy rating and three a Hold rating.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.57 per share, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 2.8% with a payout ratio of 63.16%.

Aberdeen Group plc lifted its holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Free Report) by 8.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 210,696 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 15,847 shares during the period. Aberdeen Group plc's holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $14,348,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Eastern Bank raised its stake in Xcel Energy by 9.3% during the 2nd quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 6,524 shares of the company's stock worth $444,000 after acquiring an additional 556 shares during the period. Strong Tower Advisory Services raised its stake in Xcel Energy by 9.6% during the 2nd quarter. Strong Tower Advisory Services now owns 39,358 shares of the company's stock worth $2,680,000 after acquiring an additional 3,457 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in Xcel Energy by 20.0% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 8,908 shares of the company's stock worth $607,000 after acquiring an additional 1,484 shares during the period. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in Xcel Energy during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $292,000. Finally, Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI raised its stake in Xcel Energy by 9.7% during the 2nd quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 29,721 shares of the company's stock worth $2,025,000 after acquiring an additional 2,634 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.38% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on XEL shares. BMO Capital Markets set a $84.00 target price on shares of Xcel Energy in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Mizuho set a $83.00 target price on shares of Xcel Energy in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $82.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday. Bank of America lifted their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $78.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Xcel Energy in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $81.91.

Xcel Energy Trading Up 0.9%

XEL stock opened at $80.85 on Wednesday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $74.91 and a 200 day moving average price of $71.47. Xcel Energy Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $62.58 and a fifty-two week high of $82.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.96. The firm has a market cap of $47.82 billion, a PE ratio of 22.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.37.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.09. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 14.85% and a return on equity of 10.52%. The firm had revenue of $3.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.31 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.54 earnings per share. Xcel Energy's revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Xcel Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.750-3.850 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. Xcel Energy's payout ratio is presently 63.16%.

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.

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