Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Acquires 12,102 Shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 143.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 20,565 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,102 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $1,389,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 5.4% during the third quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 20,503 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,339,000 after purchasing an additional 1,050 shares during the period. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 28.2% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 28,328 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,850,000 after buying an additional 6,225 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank increased its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 19,113 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,248,000 after acquiring an additional 862 shares during the last quarter. Curi RMB Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 14.9% in the 3rd quarter. Curi RMB Capital LLC now owns 5,218 shares of the company’s stock valued at $341,000 after acquiring an additional 676 shares during the period. Finally, Metis Global Partners LLC boosted its stake in Xcel Energy by 15.9% during the 3rd quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 39,828 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,601,000 after acquiring an additional 5,450 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

XEL has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays decreased their target price on Xcel Energy from $71.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. KeyCorp raised their price target on 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 decreased their price objective on 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. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Xcel Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $71.10.

Xcel Energy Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of Xcel Energy stock opened at $69.75 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $40.08 billion, a PE ratio of 20.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.37. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $67.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $66.75. 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 Inc. has a 52-week low of $51.37 and a 52-week high of $73.38.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.06). Xcel Energy had a net margin of 14.40% and a return on equity of 10.65%. On average, analysts predict that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, April 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.27%. This is an increase from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 66.28%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Devin W. Stockfish bought 2,170 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $68.93 per share, with a total value of $149,578.10. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 3,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $207,272.51. This represents a 259.26 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.