Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) Reaches New 52-Week High - Here's Why

Key Points

• Xcel Energy reached a new 52-week high at $76.84, reflecting a significant upward trend from its previous closing price of $73.04.
• Analysts from BMO Capital Markets and Mizuho have upgraded their ratings on Xcel Energy to "outperform," with a target price set at $80.00.
• The company reported a quarterly EPS of $0.75, exceeding analysts' expectations, and announced a dividend of $0.57 scheduled for October 20th.

Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $76.84 and last traded at $76.79, with a volume of 4889036 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $73.04.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on XEL. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Xcel Energy from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their target price for the company from $73.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Monday. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Xcel Energy in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $77.70.

Xcel Energy Trading Up 5.8%

The stock has a market cap of $45.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.42, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $72.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $70.33.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.75 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.66 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $3.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.31 billion. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 14.85% and a return on equity of 10.52%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.54 earnings per share. Xcel Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.750-3.850 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Xcel Energy's payout ratio is 63.16%.

Institutional Trading of Xcel Energy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of XEL. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Xcel Energy by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 74,818,158 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,296,377,000 after buying an additional 986,170 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Xcel Energy by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 34,144,257 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,344,295,000 after buying an additional 126,790 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 9.0% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 26,262,079 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,788,448,000 after purchasing an additional 2,157,602 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 31.0% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 25,809,978 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,827,090,000 after purchasing an additional 6,109,190 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 7.9% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 20,811,241 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,473,228,000 after purchasing an additional 1,520,092 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company's stock.

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.

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