Xcel Energy Inc. $XEL Stock Acquired by RWC Asset Management LLP

RWC Asset Management LLP boosted its position in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 8.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 143,959 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,654 shares during the quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $10,146,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of XEL. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the second quarter valued at approximately $4,890,136,000. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Xcel Energy by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 38,896,012 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,145,176,000 after buying an additional 1,770,356 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its holdings in Xcel Energy by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 29,933,748 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,403,680,000 after buying an additional 491,937 shares in the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Xcel Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $891,688,000. Finally, Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC acquired a new stake in Xcel Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $708,086,000. 78.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

NASDAQ XEL traded down $0.85 on Friday, reaching $78.05. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,988,682 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,603,128. Xcel Energy Inc. has a twelve month low of $68.72 and a twelve month high of $84.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.49, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a current ratio of 0.70. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $74.68 and its two-hundred day moving average is $77.86. The stock has a market cap of $48.75 billion, a PE ratio of 21.38, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.36.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $3.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.54 billion. Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.65% and a net margin of 15.28%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 5.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.59 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 4.13 EPS for the current year.

Xcel Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 20th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 15th were given a $0.5925 dividend. This represents a $2.37 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 15th. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.93%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on XEL. HSBC began coverage on Xcel Energy in a research note on Thursday. They set a “buy” rating and a $89.00 target price on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Xcel Energy from $95.00 to $93.00 in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Mizuho set a $92.00 price objective on shares of Xcel Energy and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $97.00 to $92.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 13th. Finally, Scotiabank initiated coverage on shares of Xcel Energy in a research report on Tuesday, September 29th. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $77.00 target price for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Xcel Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $90.21.

Xcel Energy Profile

Xcel Energy Inc is a public utility holding company that provides electricity and natural gas services to residential, commercial, and industrial customers. Its operations include the generation, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity, as well as the distribution and sale of natural gas.

The company serves customers across Colorado, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Texas, and Wisconsin through operating companies including Northern States Power, Public Service Company of Colorado, Southwestern Public Service Company, and NSP-Wisconsin.