Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP Boosts Stake in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Free Report) by 17.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 224,082 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 32,489 shares during the period. Xcel Energy comprises approximately 0.4% of Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP's portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP's holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $14,633,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Covestor Ltd boosted its position in Xcel Energy by 325.9% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 1,316 shares of the company's stock valued at $71,000 after buying an additional 1,007 shares during the period. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. increased its holdings in Xcel Energy by 109.3% during the 1st quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 47,590 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,558,000 after purchasing an additional 24,850 shares during the period. Invesco LLC raised its position in Xcel Energy by 9.5% during the 1st quarter. Invesco LLC now owns 4,144 shares of the company's stock valued at $223,000 after purchasing an additional 361 shares during the last quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd lifted its holdings in Xcel Energy by 402.7% in the 1st quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 25,084 shares of the company's stock worth $1,348,000 after buying an additional 20,094 shares during the period. Finally, Vaughan David Investments LLC IL grew its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Vaughan David Investments LLC IL now owns 645,958 shares of the company's stock worth $34,720,000 after buying an additional 16,360 shares during the last quarter. 78.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on XEL shares. Barclays lifted their price objective on Xcel Energy from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Argus upgraded Xcel Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $68.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, August 26th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Xcel Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $71.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $68.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $66.38.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Xcel Energy stock traded up $0.48 during trading on Monday, hitting $69.94. 2,585,327 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,210,917. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 1 year low of $46.79 and a 1 year high of $70.42. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $64.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $59.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $40.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.75, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.38. 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 released 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). Xcel Energy had a net margin of 13.67% and a return on equity of 10.76%. The company had revenue of $3.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.93 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.23 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.55 EPS for the current year.

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.