New York State Common Retirement Fund Purchases 293,200 Shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its position in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Free Report) by 121.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 533,798 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 293,200 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned 0.09% of Xcel Energy worth $37,788,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in Xcel Energy by 18.3% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 472,344 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,437,000 after purchasing an additional 73,036 shares in the last quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Xcel Energy in the first quarter worth $329,000. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc bought a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the 1st quarter worth about $267,000. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in Xcel Energy by 51.9% in the 1st quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 14,191 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,011,000 after acquiring an additional 4,846 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 28.6% during the first quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 26,448 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,872,000 after purchasing an additional 5,883 shares during the last quarter. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group raised their price target on Xcel Energy from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price 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. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Xcel Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 20th. Evercore ISI raised 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. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $78.00 target price on Xcel Energy and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 25th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $75.80.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

NASDAQ XEL traded down $0.84 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $68.33. 2,460,336 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,593,012. The company has a market cap of $39.41 billion, a PE ratio of 20.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48. Xcel Energy Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $52.97 and a fifty-two week high of $73.38. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $68.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $68.62.

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

Xcel Energy Dividend Announcement

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

Xcel Energy Company 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.