Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) Sets New 52-Week High After Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Xcel Energy reached a new 52-week high of $83.01 following an upgrade from KeyCorp, which raised its price target from $79.00 to $85.00 while maintaining an overweight rating on the stock.
• Analyst consensus rates Xcel Energy as a Moderate Buy, with an average price target of $83.58, supported by multiple upgrades from other institutions including Bank of America and UBS Group.
• The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.57, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 2.8%, with a payout ratio of 63.16%.

Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday after KeyCorp raised their price target on the stock from $79.00 to $85.00. KeyCorp currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Xcel Energy traded as high as $83.01 and last traded at $82.54, with a volume of 294306 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $81.80.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on XEL. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $78.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of Xcel Energy in a research note on Monday, October 6th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $92.00 price target for the company. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, September 29th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $82.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $81.00 to $80.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $83.58.

Institutional Trading of Xcel Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management boosted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 9.1% in the 3rd quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management now owns 1,592 shares of the company's stock valued at $128,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Empirical Finance LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 19,196 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,307,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co lifted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 8,315 shares of the company's stock valued at $566,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 16,074 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,094,000 after acquiring an additional 144 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Xcel Energy by 7.2% in the 2nd quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,169 shares of the company's stock worth $148,000 after buying an additional 145 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company's stock.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.96. The stock has a market cap of $48.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.37. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $75.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $71.54.

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

Xcel Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. Xcel Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 63.16%.

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.

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