KeyCorp Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) Stock

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) had its price target increased by KeyCorp from $74.00 to $79.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. KeyCorp currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on XEL. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $71.00 to $76.00 in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target 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. Argus raised Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, August 26th. UBS Group raised their price target on Xcel Energy from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Xcel Energy from $67.00 to $71.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $67.00.

Xcel Energy Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of XEL stock opened at $70.72 on Wednesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $66.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $60.69. Xcel Energy has a twelve month low of $46.79 and a twelve month high of $73.38. The company has a market capitalization of $40.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42.

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Xcel Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp raised its holdings 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 grew its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 6.2% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 15,190,756 shares of the company’s stock valued at $991,956,000 after purchasing an additional 892,740 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 1.8% in the third 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 during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of 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. Finally, Brookfield Corp ON grew its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 520.1% in the third quarter. Brookfield Corp ON now owns 2,509,031 shares of the company’s stock valued at $163,840,000 after purchasing an additional 2,104,405 shares during the period. 78.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.