iA Global Asset Management Inc. Has $4.18 Million Stock Holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

iA Global Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 8.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 61,894 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,063 shares during the quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $4,179,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in XEL. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 6.7% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 37,143,025 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,445,477,000 after purchasing an additional 2,323,448 shares in the last quarter. Brookfield Corp ON lifted its position in Xcel Energy by 520.1% during the 3rd quarter. Brookfield Corp ON now owns 2,509,031 shares of the company’s stock worth $163,840,000 after buying an additional 2,104,405 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Xcel Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $83,653,000. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. lifted its position in Xcel Energy by 440.2% during the 4th quarter. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. now owns 1,455,927 shares of the company’s stock worth $98,304,000 after buying an additional 1,186,427 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Burkehill Global Management LP acquired a new position in Xcel Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $67,520,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Devin W. Stockfish purchased 2,170 shares of Xcel Energy stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $68.93 per share, with a total value of $149,578.10. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 3,007 shares in the company, valued at $207,272.51. The trade was a 259.26 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.09% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

Shares of XEL stock opened at $70.09 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market cap of $40.27 billion, a PE ratio of 20.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.37. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $68.09 and a 200-day moving average of $66.96. Xcel Energy Inc. has a one year low of $51.58 and a one year high of $73.38.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.06). Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.65% and a net margin of 14.40%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, April 20th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.57 per share. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.25%. This is a boost from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 66.28%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on XEL shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $69.00 to $80.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Xcel Energy from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday. Barclays dropped their price objective on Xcel Energy from $71.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their price objective on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $71.70.

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.