Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV Sells 3,716 Shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV trimmed its holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Free Report) by 53.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,183 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,716 shares during the period. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV's holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $215,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of XEL. AMF Tjanstepension AB grew its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 185.2% during the 3rd quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 34,960 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,283,000 after purchasing an additional 22,701 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning grew its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 286,755 shares of the company's stock valued at $18,725,000 after purchasing an additional 4,136 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 47.7% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 6,820 shares of the company's stock valued at $445,000 after purchasing an additional 2,203 shares in the last quarter. Cyndeo Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Xcel Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $201,000. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 23.4% during the 3rd quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 25,110 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,640,000 after purchasing an additional 4,760 shares in the last quarter. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Xcel Energy Trading Up 0.9 %

Xcel Energy stock traded up $0.62 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $69.94. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,379,381 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,399,182. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market cap of $40.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.43. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $67.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $65.54. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 12 month low of $46.79 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 for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.87 by ($0.06). Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.65% and a net margin of 14.40%. As a group, analysts forecast that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 EPS for the current year.

Xcel Energy Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 6th were issued a dividend of $0.5475 per share. This represents a $2.19 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, January 6th. Xcel Energy's payout ratio is 63.66%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on XEL shares. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $71.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $71.00 to $69.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Xcel Energy currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $69.91.

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.