ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd Acquires 1,174 Shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd raised its holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 19.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,277 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,174 shares during the period. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $475,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. lifted its position in Xcel Energy by 28.2% during the third quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 28,328 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,850,000 after purchasing an additional 6,225 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 5.4% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 20,503 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,339,000 after acquiring an additional 1,050 shares during the period. Empower Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 145,015 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,469,000 after acquiring an additional 1,328 shares in the last quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Xcel Energy by 9.5% in the third quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 11,649 shares of the company’s stock valued at $761,000 after acquiring an additional 1,008 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Heartland Consultants Inc. acquired a new position in Xcel Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $215,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on XEL. Barclays lifted their price target on Xcel Energy from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Xcel Energy from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $68.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Argus raised shares of Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $69.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $66.38.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

XEL stock opened at $68.65 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.93. The firm has a market cap of $39.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.38. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $64.41 and its 200 day moving average is $58.94. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 52 week low of $46.79 and a 52 week high of $69.35.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.26 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $3.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.93 billion. Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.76% and a net margin of 13.67%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.23 EPS. Research analysts predict that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current year.

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.