Schroder Investment Management Group Sells 40,648 Shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Schroder Investment Management Group lowered its position in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL - Free Report) by 45.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 48,583 shares of the company's stock after selling 40,648 shares during the period. Schroder Investment Management Group's holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $3,284,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 73,831,988 shares of the company's stock worth $4,985,136,000 after purchasing an additional 953,002 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 19,291,149 shares of the company's stock worth $1,302,538,000 after buying an additional 1,022,194 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,562,103 shares of the company's stock worth $952,091,000 after buying an additional 262,191 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 236.7% in the 4th quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 4,878,279 shares of the company's stock worth $329,381,000 after buying an additional 3,429,353 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,777,002 shares of the company's stock worth $255,023,000 after buying an additional 11,529 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company's stock.

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Xcel Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ XEL traded down $0.21 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $68.37. 541,911 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,588,110. 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's 50 day moving average price is $69.03 and its 200-day moving average price is $67.57. The firm has a market cap of $39.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.88, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.39. Xcel Energy Inc. has a twelve month low of $51.97 and a twelve month high of $73.38.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share 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%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 EPS 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 paid a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is an increase from Xcel Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.33%. Xcel Energy's dividend payout ratio is 66.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on XEL shares. UBS Group increased their target price on Xcel Energy from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Barclays increased their target price on Xcel Energy from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 31st. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Xcel Energy from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Xcel Energy from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $73.00.

Insider Transactions at Xcel Energy

In related news, Director Devin W. Stockfish purchased 2,170 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $68.93 per share, with a total value of $149,578.10. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 3,007 shares of the company's stock, valued at $207,272.51. The trade was a 259.26 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.