Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC raised its holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Free Report) by 19.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 6,573,894 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,090,208 shares during the quarter. Xcel Energy comprises 1.5% of Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC owned approximately 1.14% of Xcel Energy worth $443,869,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.
Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in Xcel Energy in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Fairway Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Xcel Energy during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in Xcel Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. MCF Advisors LLC grew its stake in Xcel Energy by 566.3% in the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 593 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 504 shares during the period. Finally, First Financial Corp IN bought a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $46,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company's stock.
Insider Activity
In other news, Director Devin W. Stockfish bought 2,170 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were bought at an average price of $68.93 per share, for a total transaction of $149,578.10. Following the completion of the purchase, 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 ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.09% of the company's stock.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Barclays boosted their price objective on Xcel Energy from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Xcel Energy from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday. KeyCorp upped their price objective 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, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Xcel Energy from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $73.00.
Check Out Our Latest Research Report on XEL
Xcel Energy Stock Up 1.8 %
Shares of NASDAQ:XEL traded up $1.26 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $72.16. The stock had a trading volume of 1,071,652 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,562,039. The company has a market cap of $41.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.98, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.37. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 12 month low of $51.97 and a 12 month high of $73.38. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $68.81 and its 200-day simple moving average is $67.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42.
Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 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, sell-side analysts forecast 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. Shareholders 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 of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.16%. Xcel Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 66.28%.
Xcel Energy Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
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