Xcel Energy Inc. $XEL Shares Purchased by Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 37.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 47,946 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 12,979 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $3,541,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of XEL. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the second quarter worth $25,000. ORG Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 168.4% in the 3rd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 314 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the period. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in Xcel Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Abound Wealth Management raised its holdings in Xcel Energy by 394.5% during the 4th quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 361 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 288 shares during the period. Finally, First Command Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new stake in Xcel Energy during the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. 78.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

Shares of XEL opened at $79.17 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $49.39 billion, a PE ratio of 23.15, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.71. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $79.33 and its 200 day moving average price is $78.27. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 52 week low of $65.21 and a 52 week high of $84.23.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 13.76% and a return on equity of 10.46%. The company had revenue of $3.56 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.77 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.81 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 20th. Investors of record on Friday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $0.5925 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 13th. This is a positive change from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. Xcel Energy’s payout ratio is 69.30%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on XEL shares. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $95.00 target price on shares of Xcel Energy in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, March 20th. Mizuho set a $86.00 price objective on shares of Xcel Energy in a research note on Friday, January 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $90.00 to $87.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, BTIG Research set a $94.00 target price on shares of Xcel Energy in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $88.44.

Xcel Energy Profile

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ: XEL) is a Minneapolis-based, publicly traded utility holding company that develops, owns and operates regulated electricity and natural gas delivery systems. The company’s core activities include generation, transmission and distribution of electricity, the delivery of natural gas to customers, and related customer service operations. Xcel provides a mix of utility services to residential, commercial and industrial customers and participates in wholesale energy markets where appropriate.

Its generation portfolio combines nuclear, natural gas, coal and a growing share of renewable resources such as wind and solar.