Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Shares Sold by Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co.

Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. lessened its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Free Report) by 9.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,976,451 shares of the company's stock after selling 207,097 shares during the quarter. Xcel Energy makes up approximately 1.3% of Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. owned approximately 0.36% of Xcel Energy worth $105,562,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in XEL. Lummis Asset Management LP increased its holdings in Xcel Energy by 50.7% in the second quarter. Lummis Asset Management LP now owns 4,949 shares of the company's stock valued at $264,000 after purchasing an additional 1,666 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company boosted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 5.0% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 546,873 shares of the company's stock worth $29,208,000 after purchasing an additional 26,092 shares in the last quarter. MBB Public Markets I LLC boosted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 751.9% during the 2nd quarter. MBB Public Markets I LLC now owns 49,187 shares of the company's stock worth $2,627,000 after purchasing an additional 43,413 shares in the last quarter. Decade Renewable Partners LP bought a new position in Xcel Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $3,082,000. Finally, Employees Retirement System of Texas bought a new position in Xcel Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,831,000. Institutional investors own 78.38% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on XEL. Argus raised shares of 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. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $57.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $68.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Xcel Energy in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Xcel Energy presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $64.14.

Xcel Energy Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of XEL stock traded up $0.59 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $64.57. 1,912,936 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,252,125. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 12 month low of $46.79 and a 12 month high of $64.95. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $60.82 and its 200 day simple moving average is $56.40. The stock has a market cap of $35.88 billion, a PE ratio of 19.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.38.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported $0.54 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.57 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $3.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.29 billion. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 13.46% and a return on equity of 10.94%. The business's quarterly revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.52 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.55 EPS for the current year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, October 20th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.548 per share. This is a boost from Xcel Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 13th. This represents a $2.19 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.39%. Xcel Energy's payout ratio is 65.77%.

Xcel Energy Company 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.