Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC Acquires New Holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 268,308 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,116,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Dakota Wealth Management raised its holdings in Xcel Energy by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 23,130 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,562,000 after buying an additional 151 shares during the period. Rothschild Investment LLC increased its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 26.0% in the fourth quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 731 shares of the company's stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares in the last quarter. GenTrust LLC raised its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. GenTrust LLC now owns 3,602 shares of the company's stock valued at $243,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares during the period. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 23.2% during the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 827 shares of the company's stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Integris Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Xcel Energy by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Integris Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,323 shares of the company's stock worth $427,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the period. 78.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Xcel Energy

In related news, Director Devin W. Stockfish purchased 2,170 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $68.93 per share, with a total value of $149,578.10. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 3,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,272.51. This trade represents a 259.26 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.

Xcel Energy Stock Up 0.8 %

NASDAQ:XEL traded up $0.58 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $69.58. The stock had a trading volume of 2,994,500 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,589,632. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $69.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $68.15. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 1-year low of $51.97 and a 1-year high of $73.38. The company has a market capitalization of $40.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.82.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $0.84 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.95 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $3.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.93 billion. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 14.40% and a return on equity of 10.65%. Xcel Energy's revenue was up 7.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.88 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 EPS for the current year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, April 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.28%. This is a boost from Xcel Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. Xcel Energy's dividend payout ratio is 67.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on XEL shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Xcel Energy from $69.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. UBS Group upped their price target on Xcel Energy from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. StockNews.com raised shares of Xcel Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. Morgan Stanley set a $79.00 target price on shares of Xcel Energy and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $74.82.

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.