Cerity Partners LLC Purchases 27,964 Shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Free Report) by 10.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 305,905 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 27,964 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC owned 0.05% of Xcel Energy worth $21,658,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in Xcel Energy by 43.6% during the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 20,762,745 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,401,901,000 after acquiring an additional 6,306,380 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its holdings in Xcel Energy by 118.3% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,608,044 shares of the company's stock worth $446,175,000 after buying an additional 3,581,436 shares during the last quarter. Zimmer Partners LP raised its holdings in Xcel Energy by 1,625.7% in the fourth quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 3,667,200 shares of the company's stock worth $247,609,000 after buying an additional 3,454,700 shares during the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its holdings in Xcel Energy by 236.7% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 4,878,279 shares of the company's stock worth $329,381,000 after buying an additional 3,429,353 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings in Xcel Energy by 379.3% in the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,022,085 shares of the company's stock worth $271,578,000 after buying an additional 3,182,939 shares during the last quarter. 78.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

NASDAQ XEL traded up $0.84 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $69.17. 3,623,656 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,598,604. The business's fifty day moving average price is $68.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $68.62. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.36. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 52 week low of $53.37 and a 52 week high of $73.38.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results 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 business had revenue of $3.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.93 billion. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 14.10% and a return on equity of 10.20%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.88 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 EPS for the current year.

Xcel Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, July 20th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.30%. Xcel Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

XEL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Xcel Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $78.00 to $77.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $75.80.

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.