Two Sigma Investments LP Raises Stock Position in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Two Sigma Investments LP increased its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Free Report) by 78.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 909,412 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 399,691 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP owned 0.16% of Xcel Energy worth $61,403,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in XEL. Hodges Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 447.1% in the fourth quarter. Hodges Capital Management Inc. now owns 51,396 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,470,000 after purchasing an additional 42,001 shares during the period. Atomi Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in Xcel Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $278,000. GEN Financial Management INC. acquired a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $301,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 35.8% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 14,825 shares of the company's stock worth $1,001,000 after acquiring an additional 3,905 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 134,107 shares of the company's stock worth $9,055,000 after acquiring an additional 6,114 shares in the last quarter. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Devin W. Stockfish purchased 2,170 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $68.93 per share, for a total transaction of $149,578.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 3,007 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $207,272.51. The trade was 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 this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Xcel Energy Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:XEL opened at $72.21 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.99, a price-to-earnings-growth 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. The company's fifty day moving average is $69.80 and its two-hundred day moving average is $68.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.93.

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

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared 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. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.16%. This is a boost from Xcel Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. Xcel Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 67.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on XEL shares. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 2nd. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. 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 note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $76.00.

About Xcel Energy

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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