Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC Buys 67,531 Shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 7.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,033,255 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 67,531 shares during the period. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.18% of Xcel Energy worth $67,472,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Czech National Bank lifted its holdings in Xcel Energy by 9.1% during the second quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 105,882 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,655,000 after acquiring an additional 8,790 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 21.6% during the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 61,167 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,267,000 after purchasing an additional 10,851 shares during the period. Simplicity Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 60.3% during the 2nd quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 22,999 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,228,000 after purchasing an additional 8,656 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates increased its holdings in Xcel Energy by 83.5% during the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 1,103,809 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,954,000 after purchasing an additional 502,231 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ING Groep NV raised its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 85.0% in the 3rd quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 231,482 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,116,000 after purchasing an additional 106,326 shares during the period. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group raised Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $71.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Argus upgraded Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, August 26th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Xcel Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $67.00.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

Xcel Energy stock opened at $70.86 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $40.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.03, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 12 month low of $46.79 and a 12 month high of $73.38. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $66.78 and its 200-day moving average is $60.76.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $3.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.93 billion. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 13.67% and a return on equity of 10.76%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.23 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.54 EPS for the current year.

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.