Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) Price Target Raised to $71.00

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) had its price objective upped by Barclays from $67.00 to $71.00 in a report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the stock.

Several other research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of 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 research note on Friday, November 1st. Argus upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. UBS Group upped their target price 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $66.62.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

XEL stock opened at $72.92 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $66.06 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $60.22. Xcel Energy has a 12-month low of $46.79 and a 12-month high of $73.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.64, a PEG ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.38. 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 results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.26 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $3.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.93 billion. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 13.67% and a return on equity of 10.76%. Xcel Energy’s quarterly revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.23 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Xcel Energy will post 3.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Xcel Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of XEL. Czech National Bank increased its holdings in Xcel Energy by 9.1% in the 2nd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 105,882 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,655,000 after acquiring an additional 8,790 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its holdings in Xcel Energy by 165.0% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 107,344 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,770,000 after acquiring an additional 66,840 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its holdings in Xcel Energy by 21.6% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 61,167 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,267,000 after acquiring an additional 10,851 shares during the last quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Xcel Energy by 60.3% in the 2nd quarter. Simplicity Wealth LLC now owns 22,999 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,228,000 after acquiring an additional 8,656 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates increased its holdings in Xcel Energy by 83.5% in the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 1,103,809 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,954,000 after acquiring an additional 502,231 shares during the last quarter. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.