Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Shares Purchased by Federated Hermes Inc.

Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its position in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 120.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,379,615 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,299,025 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $127,095,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of XEL. Heritage Wealth Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Tidemark LLC acquired a new stake in Xcel Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Xcel Energy during the 2nd quarter worth about $30,000. American National Bank acquired a new position in shares of Xcel Energy during the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of Xcel Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. 78.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on XEL. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Xcel Energy from $62.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Argus raised shares of Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $62.92.

Xcel Energy Trading Up 0.1 %

NASDAQ XEL opened at $63.89 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $58.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $55.45. Xcel Energy Inc. has a one year low of $46.79 and a one year high of $64.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.97. The firm has a market cap of $35.62 billion, a PE ratio of 19.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.38.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.57 by ($0.03). Xcel Energy had a net margin of 13.46% and a return on equity of 10.94%. The company had revenue of $3.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.29 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. The business’s revenue was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, October 20th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.548 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. This is an increase from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.19 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.43%. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 65.77%.

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.