Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Shares Sold by Trexquant Investment LP

Trexquant Investment LP lowered its position in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 51.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 148,046 shares of the company’s stock after selling 158,525 shares during the quarter. Trexquant Investment LP’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $9,996,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Xcel Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in Xcel Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. MCF Advisors LLC grew its position in Xcel Energy by 566.3% during the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 593 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 504 shares during the period. Finally, First Financial Corp IN purchased a new position in shares of Xcel Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $46,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Xcel Energy

In other Xcel Energy news, Director Devin W. Stockfish acquired 2,170 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $68.93 per share, for a total transaction of $149,578.10. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 3,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,272.51. The trade was a 259.26 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Xcel Energy Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ XEL opened at $70.90 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $40.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.37. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $68.81 and its 200-day simple moving average is $67.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 52-week low of $51.97 and a 52-week high of $73.38.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Equities analysts predict that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 EPS for the current fiscal 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 paid a $0.57 dividend. This is an increase from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 66.28%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on XEL. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Xcel Energy from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $69.00 to $80.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. KeyCorp increased their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Xcel Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $73.00.

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.