Q1 EPS Estimates for Xcel Energy Lifted by Zacks Research

Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) – Investment analysts at Zacks Research lifted their Q1 2025 earnings per share estimates for shares of Xcel Energy in a research report issued on Thursday, March 27th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now forecasts that the company will post earnings per share of $0.95 for the quarter, up from their previous forecast of $0.94. The consensus estimate for Xcel Energy’s current full-year earnings is $3.82 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Xcel Energy’s Q2 2025 earnings at $0.62 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $1.28 EPS, Q3 2026 earnings at $1.50 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $4.13 EPS and FY2027 earnings at $4.44 EPS.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.06). Xcel Energy had a net margin of 14.40% and a return on equity of 10.65%.

XEL has been the subject of a number of other reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays lifted their price target on Xcel Energy from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. UBS Group raised their target price on Xcel Energy from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. KeyCorp upped their price target on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Xcel Energy from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Xcel Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.60.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

Shares of XEL stock opened at $70.79 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $68.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $67.32. Xcel Energy has a 12 month low of $51.97 and a 12 month high of $73.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.67 billion, a PE ratio of 20.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.37.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Xcel Energy

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Townsquare Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 28,180 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,840,000 after buying an additional 664 shares during the last quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Xcel Energy by 20.1% in the 3rd quarter. Freedom Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,707 shares of the company’s stock valued at $438,000 after acquiring an additional 1,123 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its holdings in Xcel Energy by 3.4% during the third quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 97,398 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,360,000 after purchasing an additional 3,200 shares during the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in Xcel Energy by 11.0% during the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 99,372 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,489,000 after purchasing an additional 9,821 shares during the period. Finally, Verition Fund Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 147.2% in the third quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 158,004 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,318,000 after purchasing an additional 94,080 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Xcel Energy

In related news, Director Devin W. Stockfish bought 2,170 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $68.93 per share, for a total transaction of $149,578.10. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,007 shares in the company, valued at $207,272.51. The trade was a 259.26 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, April 20th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.57 dividend. This is an increase from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Xcel Energy’s payout ratio is 66.28%.

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.