Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Shares Sold by Associated Banc Corp

Associated Banc Corp decreased its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Free Report) by 4.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 295,161 shares of the company's stock after selling 13,782 shares during the quarter. Associated Banc Corp owned about 0.05% of Xcel Energy worth $19,929,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of XEL. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 6.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 37,143,025 shares of the company's stock worth $2,445,477,000 after buying an additional 2,323,448 shares in the last quarter. Brookfield Corp ON increased its position in Xcel Energy by 520.1% during the third quarter. Brookfield Corp ON now owns 2,509,031 shares of the company's stock worth $163,840,000 after purchasing an additional 2,104,405 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Xcel Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $83,653,000. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. increased its position in Xcel Energy by 440.2% during the fourth quarter. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. now owns 1,455,927 shares of the company's stock worth $98,304,000 after purchasing an additional 1,186,427 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Burkehill Global Management LP acquired a new stake in Xcel Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $67,520,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.38% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on XEL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of 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 report on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $71.00 to $69.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. KeyCorp raised their price objective 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 lowered 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 note on Friday, November 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $71.10.

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Insider Activity at Xcel Energy

In other news, Director Devin W. Stockfish bought 2,170 shares of Xcel Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $68.93 per share, with a total value of $149,578.10. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,007 shares in the company, valued at $207,272.51. The trade was a 259.26 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.09% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Xcel Energy Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ XEL traded up $1.08 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $69.75. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,170,726 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,700,123. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $67.75 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $66.80. 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 Inc. has a 1 year low of $51.37 and a 1 year high of $73.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.37.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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, equities analysts predict that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 EPS for the current 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 $0.57 dividend. This is a positive change from Xcel Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.27%. Xcel Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.28%.

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.