Proficio Capital Partners LLC Makes New Investment in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 86,358 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,831,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Xcel Energy by 20.9% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 5,391 shares of the company’s stock worth $352,000 after buying an additional 933 shares during the period. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC raised its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 32.9% in the 3rd quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 8,175 shares of the company’s stock worth $526,000 after acquiring an additional 2,025 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 127,993 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,358,000 after purchasing an additional 4,535 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 5.9% during the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 159,783 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,277,000 after purchasing an additional 8,934 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Intact Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in Xcel Energy by 8.4% in the third quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 121,550 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,937,000 after purchasing an additional 9,400 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

NASDAQ XEL opened at $71.90 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 12 month low of $46.79 and a 12 month high of $73.38. The stock has a market cap of $41.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.90, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.43. The company’s 50 day moving average is $67.53 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.26.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.87 by ($0.06). Xcel Energy had a net margin of 14.40% and a return on equity of 10.65%. As a group, research analysts anticipate 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 given a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.17%. This is a boost from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 66.28%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

XEL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. KeyCorp raised their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $71.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $69.00 to $80.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Xcel Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $69.91.

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.