Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) PT Set at $78.00 by Morgan Stanley

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report) has been given a $78.00 target price by equities researchers at Morgan Stanley in a note issued to investors on Thursday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has an "equal weight" rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley's price target suggests a potential upside of 12.70% from the company's current price.

A number of other brokerages have also recently weighed in on XEL. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Wells Fargo & Company set a $78.00 target price on shares of Xcel Energy and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, April 25th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $69.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Xcel Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Xcel Energy currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $75.90.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:XEL opened at $69.21 on Thursday. The firm's 50 day moving average is $69.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $68.86. Xcel Energy has a 52 week low of $51.97 and a 52 week high of $73.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.12, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Devin W. Stockfish bought 2,170 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $68.93 per share, for a total transaction of $149,578.10. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,007 shares in the company, valued at $207,272.51. This represents a 259.26% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Dakota Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 23,130 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,562,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC raised its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 26.0% during the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 731 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. GenTrust LLC raised its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. GenTrust LLC now owns 3,602 shares of the company's stock valued at $243,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV raised its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 23.2% during the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 827 shares of the company's stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Integris Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Integris Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,323 shares of the company's stock valued at $427,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.38% of the company's stock.

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.