Mather Group LLC. Increases Holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Mather Group LLC. raised its stake in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Free Report) by 143.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,284 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,876 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC.'s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $586,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Xcel Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in Xcel Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $52,000. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in Xcel Energy by 23.2% during the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 827 shares of the company's stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Heritage Wealth Advisors boosted its position in Xcel Energy by 160.0% in the 4th quarter. Heritage Wealth Advisors now owns 1,040 shares of the company's stock valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 640 shares during the last quarter. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on XEL shares. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $78.00 to $77.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Barclays increased their price objective 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. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Xcel Energy from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Xcel Energy from $69.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $75.80.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

Shares of XEL stock traded up $0.70 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $68.26. 2,236,072 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,591,090. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $39.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.36. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $69.15 and a 200 day simple moving average of $68.57. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 52-week low of $51.97 and a 52-week high of $73.38.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.95 by ($0.11). Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.20% and a net margin of 14.10%. The firm had revenue of $3.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.93 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.88 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, July 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.34%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. Xcel Energy's payout ratio is 67.06%.

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.