Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) Price Target Raised to $74.00

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) had its target price lifted by investment analysts at KeyCorp from $69.00 to $74.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “overweight” rating on the stock. KeyCorp’s target price points to a potential upside of 9.86% from the stock’s previous close.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Jefferies Financial Group raised Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $71.00 to $76.00 in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Argus upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Xcel Energy from $68.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $66.38.

Xcel Energy Stock Up 0.8 %

Shares of NASDAQ XEL opened at $67.36 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $63.48 and a 200-day moving average of $58.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.11, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. Xcel Energy has a 12 month low of $46.79 and a 12 month high of $67.73.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $3.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.93 billion. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 13.46% and a return on equity of 10.94%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.23 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Xcel Energy will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Xcel Energy

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in Xcel Energy by 770.0% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 7,552,625 shares of the company’s stock valued at $405,955,000 after acquiring an additional 6,684,499 shares during the period. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new position in Xcel Energy in the first quarter valued at about $80,283,000. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 120.2% in the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 2,379,615 shares of the company’s stock worth $127,095,000 after buying an additional 1,299,025 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in Xcel Energy by 130.4% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,084,345 shares of the company’s stock valued at $111,325,000 after acquiring an additional 1,179,823 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zimmer Partners LP increased its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 1,765.0% during the first quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 932,505 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,122,000 after purchasing an additional 882,505 shares in the last quarter. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.