Summit Global Investments Sells 121,799 Shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Summit Global Investments cut its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 95.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,335 shares of the company’s stock after selling 121,799 shares during the period. Summit Global Investments’ holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $330,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Xcel Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Capital Analysts LLC grew its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 293.6% in the fourth quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 433 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Xcel Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

Shares of Xcel Energy stock opened at $54.25 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.86. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 52-week low of $46.79 and a 52-week high of $69.85. The company has a fifty day moving average of $53.24 and a 200-day moving average of $57.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.36.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $0.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.08. Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 11.03% and a net margin of 13.36%. The company had revenue of $3.65 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.76 EPS. Xcel Energy’s revenue for the quarter was down 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.56 EPS for the current year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, April 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a dividend of $0.548 per share. This is a positive change 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 4.04%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.77%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

XEL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Xcel Energy from $68.00 to $59.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Wolfe Research upgraded Xcel Energy from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $58.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 11th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Xcel Energy from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Xcel Energy from $54.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given 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 an average 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.