Corebridge Financial Inc. Sells 1,549 Shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Corebridge Financial Inc. reduced its holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 173,316 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,549 shares during the quarter. Corebridge Financial Inc.’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $11,702,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Hodges Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Xcel Energy by 447.1% during the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 7.0% during the third quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 189,954 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,404,000 after acquiring an additional 12,477 shares in the last quarter. Atomi Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the fourth quarter worth $278,000. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 64.4% during the third quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 27,634 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,805,000 after acquiring an additional 10,821 shares during the period. Finally, GEN Financial Management INC. bought a new stake in Xcel Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $301,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

NASDAQ:XEL opened at $67.93 on Wednesday. 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 firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $68.39 and a 200 day simple moving average of $67.15. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 1-year low of $51.58 and a 1-year high of $73.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.03 billion, a PE ratio of 19.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.37.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last released its quarterly earnings data 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%. On average, research analysts expect that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, April 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.36%. This is a boost from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

XEL has been the topic of several recent research reports. UBS Group lifted their price target on Xcel Energy from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. KeyCorp lifted their target price on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Barclays cut their target price on Xcel Energy from $71.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $72.30.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Devin W. Stockfish bought 2,170 shares of Xcel Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $68.93 per share, with a total value of $149,578.10. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 3,007 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $207,272.51. This represents a 259.26 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Xcel Energy

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.