Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. Buys New Shares in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 6,594 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $445,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its position in Xcel Energy by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 13,421 shares of the company’s stock worth $906,000 after purchasing an additional 366 shares in the last quarter. CX Institutional lifted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 56.1% during the 4th quarter. CX Institutional now owns 6,004 shares of the company’s stock valued at $405,000 after buying an additional 2,158 shares in the last quarter. RFG Advisory LLC grew its stake in Xcel Energy by 33.1% in the 4th quarter. RFG Advisory LLC now owns 7,253 shares of the company’s stock valued at $490,000 after acquiring an additional 1,804 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in Xcel Energy during the fourth quarter worth $240,000. Finally, Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new position in Xcel Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $54,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

NASDAQ XEL opened at $66.61 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $68.26 and a 200-day simple moving average of $63.90. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The stock has a market cap of $38.25 billion, a PE ratio of 19.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.42. Xcel Energy Inc. has a twelve month low of $46.79 and a twelve month high of $73.38.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analyst estimates of $3.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.23 earnings per share. Xcel Energy’s revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Xcel Energy Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 6th will be paid a $0.5475 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, January 6th. This represents a $2.19 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.29%. Xcel Energy’s payout ratio is presently 64.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on XEL shares. KeyCorp raised their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Xcel Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $70.00 to $72.00 in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Barclays cut their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $71.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.50.

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.