Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. Decreases Holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Free Report) by 62.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,763 shares of the company's stock after selling 9,478 shares during the quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc.'s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $408,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in XEL. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted 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 worth $33,437,000 after purchasing an additional 73,036 shares during the last quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Xcel Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $329,000. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the 1st quarter worth $267,000. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 51.9% during the 1st quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 14,191 shares of the company's stock worth $1,011,000 after purchasing an additional 4,846 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 28.6% during the 1st quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 26,448 shares of the company's stock worth $1,872,000 after purchasing an additional 5,883 shares in the last quarter. 78.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on XEL shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted 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. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 20th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $75.80.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

Shares of XEL traded up $0.73 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $70.38. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,421,047 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,605,706. The stock has a market cap of $40.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.70, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.36. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $68.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $68.66. 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 1-year low of $55.02 and a 1-year high of $73.38.

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). The company had revenue of $3.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.93 billion. Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.20% and a net margin of 14.10%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.88 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, July 20th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be paid a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.24%. 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.