Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Shares Sold by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its stake in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 1.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,535,308 shares of the company’s stock after selling 49,246 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.46% of Xcel Energy worth $135,411,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 770.0% in 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 acquiring an additional 6,684,499 shares during the period. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Xcel Energy during the 1st quarter worth $80,283,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in Xcel Energy by 7.9% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 19,994,298 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,237,847,000 after purchasing an additional 1,472,435 shares during the last quarter. Zimmer Partners LP increased its stake in Xcel Energy by 1,765.0% in the first quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 932,505 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,122,000 after purchasing an additional 882,505 shares during the period. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 155.3% in the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,140,853 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,630,000 after buying an additional 693,921 shares during the last quarter. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on XEL shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Xcel Energy from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Argus upgraded Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $62.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $62.92.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

XEL traded down $0.16 on Friday, hitting $61.23. 2,858,332 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,293,594. Xcel Energy Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $46.79 and a fifty-two week high of $64.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.37. The business’s fifty day moving average is $56.62 and its 200 day moving average is $55.18.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.57 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $3.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.29 billion. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 13.46% and a return on equity of 11.00%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.52 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.55 EPS for the current year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, October 20th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be given a $0.548 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. This is a positive change from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.19 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.58%. Xcel Energy’s payout ratio is currently 65.77%.

Xcel Energy 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.