Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Makes New Investment in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new stake in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 307,292 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $20,748,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH owned 0.05% of Xcel Energy as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in Xcel Energy by 43.6% during the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 20,762,745 shares of the company's stock worth $1,401,901,000 after acquiring an additional 6,306,380 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 118.3% in the 4th 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 4th quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 3,667,200 shares of the company's stock worth $247,609,000 after purchasing an additional 3,454,700 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA increased its stake in Xcel Energy by 236.7% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 379.3% during the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,022,085 shares of the company's stock valued at $271,578,000 after purchasing an additional 3,182,939 shares in the last quarter. 78.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

XEL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company set a $78.00 price target on Xcel Energy and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Xcel Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Xcel Energy from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Morgan Stanley set a $78.00 price target on Xcel Energy and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Xcel Energy from $69.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. One research 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 data from MarketBeat.com, Xcel Energy presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $75.90.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

XEL stock traded up $0.73 on Friday, reaching $70.20. The company had a trading volume of 3,985,767 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,629,700. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 1 year low of $51.97 and a 1 year high of $73.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.93. The company's fifty day moving average is $69.89 and its 200 day moving average is $68.96. The company has a market cap of $40.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.41, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.38.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $0.84 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.95 by ($0.11). Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.65% and a net margin of 14.40%. The firm had revenue of $3.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.93 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.88 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast 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 Wednesday, July 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.25%. Xcel Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 67.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Xcel Energy

In other news, Director Devin W. Stockfish acquired 2,170 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $68.93 per share, for a total transaction of $149,578.10. Following the transaction, the director now owns 3,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,272.51. This trade represents a 259.26% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.