Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) Downgraded to Sell Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report report published on Saturday.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Truist Financial started coverage on Xcel Energy in a research note on Monday, April 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $95.00 price target for the company. UBS Group lifted their price target on Xcel Energy from $89.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Argus set a $86.00 price target on Xcel Energy in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Xcel Energy from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, March 20th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $91.13.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

Shares of XEL opened at $79.39 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.45, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.68. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $80.57 and a 200-day moving average of $78.70. The company has a market cap of $49.56 billion, a PE ratio of 22.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.41. Xcel Energy has a one year low of $65.21 and a one year high of $84.23.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91. The business had revenue of $4.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.21 billion. Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.37% and a net margin of 14.14%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.84 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Xcel Energy will post 4.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 13th were given a dividend of $0.5925 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 13th. This represents a $2.37 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. This is an increase from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. Xcel Energy’s payout ratio is 68.30%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Xcel Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of XEL. ORG Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 168.4% in the 3rd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 314 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 197 shares during the period. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in Xcel Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Abound Wealth Management grew its stake in Xcel Energy by 394.5% in the 4th quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 361 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 288 shares in the last quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in Xcel Energy by 365.3% in the 1st quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. now owns 349 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 274 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Xcel Energy in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Company Profile

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ: XEL) is a Minneapolis-based, publicly traded utility holding company that develops, owns and operates regulated electricity and natural gas delivery systems. The company’s core activities include generation, transmission and distribution of electricity, the delivery of natural gas to customers, and related customer service operations. Xcel provides a mix of utility services to residential, commercial and industrial customers and participates in wholesale energy markets where appropriate.

Its generation portfolio combines nuclear, natural gas, coal and a growing share of renewable resources such as wind and solar.