Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Shares Sold by Access Financial Services Inc.

Access Financial Services Inc. lessened its position in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 5.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 6,158 shares of the company’s stock after selling 329 shares during the period. Access Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $416,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in XEL. Integris Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 2.7% in the third quarter. Integris Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,163 shares of the company’s stock valued at $402,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the period. Bond & Devick Financial Network Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 1.1% in the third quarter. Bond & Devick Financial Network Inc. now owns 15,972 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,043,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 5.9% in the third quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 3,037 shares of the company’s stock valued at $209,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group lifted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,920 shares of the company’s stock valued at $130,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the period. Finally, Gateway Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 4.3% in the second quarter. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC now owns 4,413 shares of the company’s stock valued at $236,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

XEL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $71.00 to $76.00 in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $70.00 to $72.00 in a research report on Monday, January 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $69.67.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

Xcel Energy stock opened at $66.72 on Monday. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 1 year low of $46.79 and a 1 year high of $73.38. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $68.41 and a 200 day moving average price of $63.58. The company has a market cap of $38.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.80, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.93.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 in the previous year, the firm posted $1.23 earnings per share. Xcel Energy’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Xcel Energy Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 6th will be given a dividend of $0.5475 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 6th. This represents a $2.19 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.28%. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.99%.

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.