StockNews.com Downgrades Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) to Sell

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) was downgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report issued on Friday.

XEL has been the subject of a number of other research reports. KeyCorp decreased their target price on Xcel Energy from $68.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 19th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Xcel Energy from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. TheStreet downgraded Xcel Energy from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Xcel Energy from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Xcel Energy from $68.00 to $59.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $62.58.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ XEL opened at $53.96 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.72. The company has a market cap of $29.97 billion, a PE ratio of 16.81, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.36. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $53.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $58.07. Xcel Energy has a fifty-two week low of $46.79 and a fifty-two week high of $70.72.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $0.88 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.08. Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 11.12% and a net margin of 13.36%. The firm had revenue of $3.65 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.76 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 10.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Xcel Energy will post 3.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Xcel Energy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Xcel Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Heritage Wealth Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Finally, Capital Analysts LLC raised its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 293.6% during the 4th quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 433 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Xcel Energy

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.