Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Shares Purchased by Hills Bank & Trust Co

Hills Bank & Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 11.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 5,796 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 600 shares during the period. Hills Bank & Trust Co’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $359,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Raymond James & Associates grew its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 37.1% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 313,072 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,914,000 after acquiring an additional 84,670 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 4.9% in the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 131,502 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,525,000 after purchasing an additional 6,194 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank raised its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 5.0% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 172,594 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,876,000 after buying an additional 8,242 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 166.9% during the third quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 162,345 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,065,000 after buying an additional 101,521 shares during the period. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Xcel Energy by 20.6% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 559,046 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,989,000 after buying an additional 95,629 shares in the last quarter. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ XEL traded up $0.31 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $55.24. 4,350,946 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,315,395. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.38 and a beta of 0.36. Xcel Energy Inc. has a one year low of $46.79 and a one year high of $69.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.74. The company’s 50 day moving average is $53.05 and its 200 day moving average is $57.81.

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

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, April 20th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 15th were paid a dividend of $0.548 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $2.19 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.97%. This is an increase from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. Xcel Energy’s payout ratio is currently 65.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on XEL. Barclays upped their target price on Xcel Energy from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. KeyCorp dropped their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $68.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $62.83.

Xcel Energy Company 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.