Jennison Associates LLC Increases Holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 25.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,685,487 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 342,592 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $110,062,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in Xcel Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy in the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. American National Bank purchased a new position in Xcel Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC bought a new position in Xcel Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Kimelman & Baird LLC purchased a new stake in Xcel Energy in the second quarter worth $35,000. 78.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

Shares of XEL stock opened at $70.05 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $65.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $59.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.79, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.93. Xcel Energy Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $46.79 and a fifty-two week high of $70.42.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last posted 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). Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.76% and a net margin of 13.67%. The company had revenue of $3.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.93 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.23 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on XEL. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. 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. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $71.00 to $76.00 in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Xcel Energy from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Xcel Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.38.

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.