Xcel Energy (XEL) Competitors $80.63 -0.47 (-0.58%) As of 10:56 AM Eastern This is a fair market value price provided by Polygon.io. Learn more. Add Compare Share Share Competitors Stock AnalysisAnalyst ForecastsChartCompetitorsDividendEarningsFinancialsHeadlinesInsider TradesOptions ChainOwnershipSEC FilingsShort InterestTrendsBuy This Stock XEL vs. AEP, LNT, CMS, D, DTE, DUK, FE, NEE, NI, and WECShould you be buying Xcel Energy stock or one of its competitors? The main competitors of Xcel Energy include American Electric Power (AEP), Alliant Energy (LNT), CMS Energy (CMS), Dominion Energy (D), DTE Energy (DTE), Duke Energy (DUK), FirstEnergy (FE), NextEra Energy (NEE), NiSource (NI), and WEC Energy Group (WEC). These companies are all part of the "util - elec pwr" industry. Xcel Energy vs. Its Competitors American Electric Power Alliant Energy CMS Energy Dominion Energy DTE Energy Duke Energy FirstEnergy NextEra Energy NiSource WEC Energy Group Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) and American Electric Power (NASDAQ:AEP) are both large-cap utilities companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, earnings, institutional ownership, media sentiment, valuation, dividends, risk and profitability. Does the media favor XEL or AEP? In the previous week, American Electric Power had 6 more articles in the media than Xcel Energy. MarketBeat recorded 45 mentions for American Electric Power and 39 mentions for Xcel Energy. American Electric Power's average media sentiment score of 1.27 beat Xcel Energy's score of 1.24 indicating that American Electric Power is being referred to more favorably in the news media. Company Very Positive Positive Neutral Negative Very Negative Overall Sentiment Xcel Energy 19 Very Positive mention(s) 7 Positive mention(s) 2 Neutral mention(s) 0 Negative mention(s) 0 Very Negative mention(s) Positive American Electric Power 29 Very Positive mention(s) 2 Positive mention(s) 3 Neutral mention(s) 0 Negative mention(s) 0 Very Negative mention(s) Positive Which has more risk & volatility, XEL or AEP? Xcel Energy has a beta of 0.37, meaning that its stock price is 63% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, American Electric Power has a beta of 0.48, meaning that its stock price is 52% less volatile than the S&P 500. Is XEL or AEP a better dividend stock? Xcel Energy pays an annual dividend of $2.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.8%. American Electric Power pays an annual dividend of $3.72 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.2%. Xcel Energy pays out 63.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. American Electric Power pays out 54.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Xcel Energy has raised its dividend for 22 consecutive years and American Electric Power has raised its dividend for 15 consecutive years. American Electric Power is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio. Do analysts recommend XEL or AEP? Xcel Energy currently has a consensus target price of $84.92, suggesting a potential upside of 5.13%. American Electric Power has a consensus target price of $119.26, suggesting a potential upside of 1.95%. Given Xcel Energy's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Xcel Energy is more favorable than American Electric Power.Company Sell Ratings Hold Ratings Buy Ratings Strong Buy Ratings Rating Score Xcel Energy 0 Sell rating(s) 3 Hold rating(s) 10 Buy rating(s) 1 Strong Buy rating(s) 2.86American Electric Power 1 Sell rating(s) 8 Hold rating(s) 10 Buy rating(s) 0 Strong Buy rating(s) 2.47 Is XEL or AEP more profitable? American Electric Power has a net margin of 17.68% compared to Xcel Energy's net margin of 14.85%. American Electric Power's return on equity of 11.55% beat Xcel Energy's return on equity.Company Net Margins Return on Equity Return on Assets Xcel Energy14.85% 10.52% 2.92% American Electric Power 17.68%11.55%3.11% Which has higher valuation & earnings, XEL or AEP? American Electric Power has higher revenue and earnings than Xcel Energy. American Electric Power is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Xcel Energy, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks. CompanyGross RevenuePrice/Sales RatioNet IncomeEarnings Per SharePrice/Earnings RatioXcel Energy$13.44B3.55$1.94B$3.6122.37American Electric Power$19.72B3.17$2.97B$6.8417.10 Do institutionals and insiders believe in XEL or AEP? 78.4% of Xcel Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 75.2% of American Electric Power shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.1% of Xcel Energy shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of American Electric Power shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth. SummaryAmerican Electric Power beats Xcel Energy on 11 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks. Get Xcel Energy News Delivered to You Automatically Sign up to receive the latest news and ratings for XEL and its competitors with MarketBeat's FREE daily newsletter. Subscribe Now View SMS TermsBy entering your phone number and clicking the sign-up button, you agree to receive periodic text messages from MarketBeat at the phone number you submitted, including texts that may be sent using an automatic telephone dialing system. Message and data rates may apply. Message frequency will vary. Messages will consist of stock alerts, news stories, and partner advertisements/offers. Consent is not a condition of the purchase of any goods or services. Text HELP for help/customer support. Unsubscribe at any time by replying "STOP" to any text message that you receive from MarketBeat or by visiting our mailing preferences page. Read our full terms of service and privacy policy. New MarketBeat Followers Over TimeWhat are MarkeBeat Followers?This chart shows the number of new MarketBeat users adding XEL and its top 5 competitors to their watchlist. Each company is represented with a line over a 90 day period. Skip ChartMedia Sentiment Over TimeWhat is Media Sentiment?This chart shows the average media sentiment of NASDAQ and its competitors over the past 90 days as caculated by MarketBeat. The averaged score is equivalent to the following: Very Negative Sentiment <= -1.5, Negative Sentiment > -1.5 and <= -0.5, Neutral Sentiment > -0.5 and < 0.5, Positive Sentiment >= 0.5 and < 1.5, and Very Positive Sentiment >= 1.5.Skip Chart XEL vs. The Competition Export to ExcelMetricXcel EnergyUTIL IndustryUtilities SectorNASDAQ ExchangeMarket Cap$47.79B$26.93B$17.07B$10.49BDividend Yield2.79%3.45%4.60%4.78%P/E Ratio22.3819.7058.1127.17Price / Sales3.554.5633.59132.45Price / Cash9.709.4119.3262.13Price / Book2.382.422.306.62Net Income$1.94B$1.43B$748.50M$276.88M7 Day Performance-0.20%2.87%1.17%1.49%1 Month Performance12.11%6.84%8.72%4.79%1 Year Performance27.70%17.52%60.34%36.32% Xcel Energy Competitors List Export to ExcelCompanyMarketRankShare PriceAnalysts' Price Target1Y Price PerformanceMarket CapRevenueP/E RatioEmployee CountIndicator(s)XELXcel Energy3.9045 of 5 stars$80.63-0.6%$84.92+5.3%+26.7%$47.72B$13.44B22.3511,380Trending NewsAnalyst ForecastShort Interest ↑Analyst RevisionAEPAmerican Electric Power4.5637 of 5 stars$115.66+1.4%$111.63-3.5%+16.0%$61.85B$19.72B16.9116,330Trending NewsAnalyst ForecastInsider TradeAnalyst RevisionLNTAlliant Energy4.0945 of 5 stars$68.12+2.0%$66.00-3.1%+8.5%$17.50B$3.98B21.022,998News CoveragePositive NewsAnalyst ForecastCMSCMS Energy4.3547 of 5 stars$73.19+1.2%$77.36+5.7%+5.1%$21.91B$8.02B21.658,324Trending NewsAnalyst ForecastAnalyst RevisionDDominion Energy3.8666 of 5 stars$61.500.0%$60.33-1.9%+0.2%$52.49B$14.46B21.2114,700Trending NewsAnalyst RevisionDTEDTE Energy4.6979 of 5 stars$141.84+1.3%$144.00+1.5%+10.1%$29.44B$14.20B20.419,500Positive NewsUpcoming EarningsAnalyst ForecastAnalyst RevisionDUKDuke Energy4.3247 of 5 stars$124.38+0.7%$132.25+6.3%+6.4%$96.72B$30.36B20.2226,413Trending NewsDividend AnnouncementAnalyst ForecastAnalyst RevisionFEFirstEnergy3.5858 of 5 stars$46.36+0.9%$46.25-0.2%+6.6%$26.77B$14.05B20.5112,294Upcoming EarningsAnalyst DowngradeAnalyst RevisionNEENextEra Energy4.6135 of 5 stars$82.13+2.6%$84.08+2.4%+0.7%$169.13B$25.90B28.729,300Trending NewsAnalyst ForecastAnalyst RevisionNINiSource4.3155 of 5 stars$44.18+0.8%$44.38+0.4%+23.2%$20.80B$5.46B23.507,746Positive NewsWECWEC Energy Group4.2909 of 5 stars$114.54+1.1%$110.70-3.4%+17.7%$36.87B$8.60B21.947,017Trending NewsDividend AnnouncementAnalyst ForecastAnalyst Revision Related Companies and Tools Related Companies AEP Competitors LNT Competitors CMS Competitors D Competitors DTE Competitors DUK Competitors FE Competitors NEE Competitors NI Competitors WEC Competitors Top 10 Stock Comparisons Semiconductor Stocks Artificial Intelligence Stocks Growth Stocks Magnificent Seven Stocks Pharmaceutical Stocks Ecommerce Stocks Bitcoin Stocks Meme Stocks Cryptocurrency Stocks Cybersecurity Stocks This page (NASDAQ:XEL) was last updated on 10/17/2025 by MarketBeat.com Staff From Our PartnersYour Bank Account Is No Longer SafeWhat If Washington Declared That: YOUR Money ISN'T Actually Yours? Sounds insane, but that's exactly what ...Priority Gold | SponsoredINVESTOR ALERT: Tiny “$3 AI Wonder Stock” on the Verge of Blasting OffRight now, we’re witnessing a monumental shift in the world.Traders Agency | SponsoredCapital Gains Tax Strategies for SeniorsCapital gains taxes can take a bite out of your retirement income—unless you have a smart strategy. From holdi...SmartAsset | Sponsored$100 Trillion “AI Metal” Found in American Ghost TownJeff Brown recently traveled to a ghost town in the middle of an American desert… To investigate what could...Brownstone Research | SponsoredBitcoin grabs headlines, but smart money likes this tokenBitcoin grabs headlines, but smart money likes this token My research team has identified the token positio...Crypto 101 Media | Sponsored$3,600 gold is nice ... but here’s what most gold bugs are missingGold just surged past $3,600, but Weiss Ratings expert Sean Brodrick says the real upside is in select gold st...Weiss Ratings | SponsoredIf You Keep Cash In A U.S. Bank Account… Read This NOWThe Treasury Department just issued a stunning warning: U.S. banks could lose up to $6.6 trillion of custom...Banyan Hill Publishing | Sponsored7 market signals flashing red right nowRight now, the same 7 key indicators that predicted 1929, the 1970s stagflation, and the 2008 meltdown are all...American Alternative | Sponsored Adding Choose a watchlist: Watchlist Adding You have already added ten stocks to your watchlist. Upgrade to MarketBeat All Access to add more stocks to your watchlist. Adding Xcel Energy Inc. Please log in to your account or sign up in order to add this asset to your watchlist. Share Xcel Energy With A Colleague Link copied to clipboard. Get 30 Days of MarketBeat All Access for Free Sign up for MarketBeat All Access to gain access to MarketBeat's full suite of research tools. Start Your 30-Day Trial MarketBeat All Access Features Best-in-Class Portfolio Monitoring Get personalized stock ideas. Compare portfolio to indices. Check stock news, ratings, SEC filings, and more. Stock Ideas and Recommendations See daily stock ideas from top analysts. Receive short-term trading ideas from MarketBeat. Identify trending stocks on social media. Advanced Stock Screeners and Research Tools Use our seven stock screeners to find suitable stocks. Stay informed with MarketBeat's real-time news. Export data to Excel for personal analysis. Sign in to your free account to enjoy these benefits In-depth profiles and analysis for 20,000 public companies. Real-time analyst ratings, insider transactions, earnings data, and more. Our daily ratings and market update email newsletter. Sign in to your free account to enjoy all that MarketBeat has to offer. Sign In Create Account Your Email Address: Email Address Required Your Password: Password Required Log In or Sign in with Facebook Sign in with Google Forgot your password? Your Email Address: Please enter your email address. Please enter a valid email address Choose a Password: Please enter your password. Your password must be at least 8 characters long and contain at least 1 number, 1 letter, and 1 special character. Create My Account (Free) or Sign in with Facebook Sign in with Google By creating a free account, you agree to our terms of service. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.