Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP Acquires 10,096 Shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP boosted its stake in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 4.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 234,178 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,096 shares during the quarter. Xcel Energy comprises about 0.4% of Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP’s holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $15,812,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in XEL. State Street Corp raised its position in Xcel Energy by 6.7% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 37,143,025 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,445,477,000 after acquiring an additional 2,323,448 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in Xcel Energy by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 15,190,756 shares of the company’s stock valued at $991,956,000 after acquiring an additional 892,740 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 1.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,562,103 shares of the company’s stock valued at $952,091,000 after purchasing an additional 262,191 shares during the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,777,002 shares of the company’s stock worth $255,023,000 after acquiring an additional 11,529 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Xcel Energy by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,625,848 shares of the company’s stock valued at $244,817,000 after purchasing an additional 208,233 shares in the last quarter. 78.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Xcel Energy Trading Down 0.9 %

Xcel Energy stock opened at $68.73 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.93. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 1 year low of $50.76 and a 1 year high of $73.38. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $67.63 and its 200-day moving average is $66.63. The company has a market cap of $39.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.98, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.37.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.87 by ($0.06). Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.65% and a net margin of 14.40%. On average, equities analysts expect that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. 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. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.32%. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.28%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

XEL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Barclays reduced their price target on Xcel Energy from $71.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. KeyCorp raised their price objective on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $69.00 to $80.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $71.10.

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.