Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Receives $66.31 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seven have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $66.62.

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on XEL shares. 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 note on Monday, August 26th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $71.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Barclays increased their price target on Xcel Energy from $67.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Xcel Energy

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 6.7% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 37,143,025 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,445,477,000 after acquiring an additional 2,323,448 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 15,190,756 shares of the company’s stock worth $991,956,000 after purchasing an additional 892,740 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,562,103 shares of the company’s stock valued at $952,091,000 after purchasing an additional 262,191 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its position in Xcel Energy by 770.0% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,552,625 shares of the company’s stock valued at $405,955,000 after buying an additional 6,684,499 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Xcel Energy by 2.0% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,417,615 shares of the company’s stock valued at $223,170,000 after purchasing an additional 67,820 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Stock Up 1.5 %

Xcel Energy stock opened at $72.92 on Friday. Xcel Energy has a fifty-two week low of $46.79 and a fifty-two week high of $73.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.93. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $65.88 and a 200 day moving average price of $60.14. The company has a market capitalization of $41.87 billion, a PE ratio of 21.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.38.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $3.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.93 billion. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 13.67% and a return on equity of 10.76%. The business’s revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.23 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Xcel Energy will post 3.54 earnings per share for the current year.

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.