Claro Advisors LLC Lowers Stock Position in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Claro Advisors LLC lowered its holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Free Report) by 84.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,223 shares of the company's stock after selling 28,141 shares during the quarter. Claro Advisors LLC's holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $353,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Xcel Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy in the third quarter valued at $33,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at $35,000. West Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Xcel Energy during the 3rd quarter worth about $43,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial acquired a new position in Xcel Energy during the 3rd quarter worth about $50,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of Xcel Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the stock from $71.00 to $76.00 in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $67.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, 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. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $69.67.

Xcel Energy Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ XEL traded up $0.86 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $64.94. 2,655,589 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,725,365. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $68.45 and its 200-day simple moving average is $63.38. The company has a market cap of $37.29 billion, a PE ratio of 19.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.42. Xcel Energy Inc. has a twelve month low of $46.79 and a twelve month high of $73.38. 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 data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.26 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $3.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.93 billion. Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.76% and a net margin of 13.67%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.23 EPS. Research analysts predict that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, January 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.5475 per share. This represents a $2.19 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.37%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 6th. Xcel Energy's payout ratio is 64.99%.

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.