Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) Downgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report released on Friday.

XEL has been the topic of a number of other research reports. TheStreet downgraded Xcel Energy from a b- rating to a c+ rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. KeyCorp lowered their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $68.00 to $65.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $68.00 to $59.00 and set a neutral rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 13th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a peer perform rating to an outperform rating and set a $58.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday, March 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a sector perform rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $62.58.

Xcel Energy Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of Xcel Energy stock opened at $54.48 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $53.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $58.04. The stock has a market cap of $30.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.36, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.36. Xcel Energy has a 12-month low of $46.79 and a 12-month high of $70.60.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $0.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $3.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.12 billion. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 13.36% and a return on equity of 11.03%. Xcel Energy’s revenue for the quarter was down 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.76 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Xcel Energy will post 3.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, April 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a $0.548 dividend. This is an increase from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $2.19 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.02%. Xcel Energy’s payout ratio is presently 65.77%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Xcel Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Xcel Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Heritage Wealth Advisors acquired a new position in Xcel Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Finally, Capital Analysts LLC increased its holdings in Xcel Energy by 293.6% in the fourth quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 433 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

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.