Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. Invests $957,000 in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. bought a new position in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 14,169 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $957,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Dakota Wealth Management boosted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 23,130 shares of the company's stock worth $1,562,000 after buying an additional 151 shares during the period. Rothschild Investment LLC boosted its holdings in Xcel Energy by 26.0% in the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 731 shares of the company's stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the period. GenTrust LLC boosted its holdings in Xcel Energy by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. GenTrust LLC now owns 3,602 shares of the company's stock worth $243,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares during the period. Integris Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Xcel Energy by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Integris Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,323 shares of the company's stock valued at $427,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bond & Devick Financial Network Inc. raised its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 1.1% during the third quarter. Bond & Devick Financial Network Inc. now owns 15,972 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,043,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on XEL shares. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $71.00 to $69.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Xcel Energy from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $80.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $69.91.

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Xcel Energy Stock Performance

XEL traded up $0.34 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $68.00. 3,849,596 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,708,125. The stock has a market cap of $39.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.37. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $67.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $66.45. 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 12 month low of $49.89 and a 12 month high of $73.38.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.06). Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.65% and a net margin of 14.40%. Analysts anticipate that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, April 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.35%. This is a boost from Xcel Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Xcel Energy's dividend payout ratio 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.