Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Shares Bought by Bank of New York Mellon Corp

Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 0.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,777,002 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,529 shares during the quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned approximately 0.66% of Xcel Energy worth $255,023,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Xcel Energy during the third quarter valued at $25,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in shares of Xcel Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Transcendent Capital Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, MCF Advisors LLC raised its stake in Xcel Energy by 566.3% during the fourth quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 593 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 504 shares during the period. 78.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

XEL has been the subject of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $71.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley reduced 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 report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $69.91.

Xcel Energy Stock Down 0.7 %

Xcel Energy stock opened at $69.97 on Thursday. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 52 week low of $46.79 and a 52 week high of $73.38. The stock has a market cap of $40.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.34, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.43. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $67.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $65.94. 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 (NASDAQ:XEL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.87 by ($0.06). Xcel Energy had a net margin of 14.40% and a return on equity of 10.65%. On average, analysts expect that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, April 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.57 dividend. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.26%. This is a boost from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Xcel Energy’s payout ratio is currently 63.66%.

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.