Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Buys 22,811 Shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Free Report) by 12.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 212,765 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 22,811 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $14,366,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Hodges Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 447.1% during the fourth quarter. Hodges Capital Management Inc. now owns 51,396 shares of the company's stock worth $3,470,000 after purchasing an additional 42,001 shares during the period. Atomi Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the fourth quarter worth $278,000. GEN Financial Management INC. acquired a new stake in Xcel Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $301,000. Oak Thistle LLC acquired a new position in Xcel Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $1,433,000. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 35.8% during the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 14,825 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,001,000 after buying an additional 3,905 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.38% of the company's stock.

Xcel Energy Trading Up 2.1 %

Shares of XEL stock traded up $1.47 on Thursday, reaching $72.37. 1,672,363 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,564,568. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $68.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $67.39. The stock has a market cap of $41.58 billion, a PE ratio of 21.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.37. Xcel Energy Inc. has a one year low of $51.97 and a one year 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.

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Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 EPS 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The company 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 3.15%. 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 (DPR) is currently 66.28%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on XEL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Xcel Energy from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Xcel Energy from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted 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. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, KeyCorp boosted 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. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Xcel Energy has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $73.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Devin W. Stockfish purchased 2,170 shares of Xcel Energy stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $68.93 per share, for a total transaction of $149,578.10. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 3,007 shares of the company's stock, valued at $207,272.51. This represents a 259.26 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.