Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Shares Sold by Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank cut its stake in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 168,775 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,819 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $10,449,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of XEL. Quilter Plc purchased a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy in the first quarter valued at about $255,201,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in Xcel Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Xcel Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Capital Analysts LLC lifted its position in Xcel Energy by 293.6% during the 4th quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 433 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 323 shares during the period. Finally, Royal London Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Xcel Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Stock Up 1.8 %

Xcel Energy stock opened at $54.72 on Friday. Xcel Energy Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $46.79 and a fifty-two week high of $71.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.72. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $54.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $58.14. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.36.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The company reported $0.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $3.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.01 billion. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 12.47% and a return on equity of 10.78%. Xcel Energy’s quarterly revenue was down 15.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.69 EPS. Analysts predict that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, April 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.548 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. This is an increase from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.19 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.01%. Xcel Energy’s payout ratio is 68.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. TheStreet downgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. KeyCorp dropped their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $68.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Barclays upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $61.00 to $54.00 in a research report on Monday, March 11th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Xcel Energy from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Xcel Energy from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Xcel Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $62.83.

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.