Two Sigma Advisers LP Raises Stock Holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Two Sigma Advisers LP grew its stake in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Free Report) by 140.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 638,100 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 372,200 shares during the quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP owned about 0.11% of Xcel Energy worth $43,085,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 73,831,988 shares of the company's stock worth $4,985,136,000 after acquiring an additional 953,002 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in shares of 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 worth $1,401,901,000 after purchasing an additional 6,306,380 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 19,291,149 shares of the company's stock worth $1,302,538,000 after purchasing an additional 1,022,194 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 15.9% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 17,613,239 shares of the company's stock worth $1,189,246,000 after purchasing an additional 2,422,483 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,178,956 shares of the company's stock worth $1,029,223,000 after purchasing an additional 616,853 shares during the period. 78.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

XEL traded up $0.52 during trading on Friday, reaching $69.73. 3,077,431 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,636,211. The business's 50 day moving average price is $69.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $68.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The company has a market capitalization of $40.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.38. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 1 year low of $51.97 and a 1 year high of $73.38.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report) last issued 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). Xcel Energy had a net margin of 14.40% and a return on equity of 10.65%. The company had revenue of $3.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.88 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 earnings per share 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 3.27%. Xcel Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Devin W. Stockfish purchased 2,170 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $68.93 per share, for a total transaction of $149,578.10. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,007 shares of the company's stock, valued at $207,272.51. The trade was a 259.26% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen cut Xcel Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $78.00 target price on Xcel Energy and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Morgan Stanley set a $78.00 target price on Xcel Energy and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Xcel Energy from $69.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $75.90.

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.