Alliancebernstein L.P. Cuts Stock Position in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Alliancebernstein L.P. cut its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 0.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 714,839 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,100 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P.’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $48,266,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Xcel Energy by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 73,831,988 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,985,136,000 after purchasing an additional 953,002 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 6.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 37,143,025 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,445,477,000 after buying an additional 2,323,448 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 5.6% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 19,291,149 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,302,538,000 after buying an additional 1,022,194 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 1.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,562,103 shares of the company’s stock worth $952,091,000 after buying an additional 262,191 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC boosted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 19.9% during the fourth quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 6,573,894 shares of the company’s stock worth $443,869,000 after acquiring an additional 1,090,208 shares during the last quarter. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

NASDAQ XEL opened at $67.89 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $39.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.37. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $68.96 and its 200-day moving average price is $67.45. Xcel Energy Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $51.97 and a fifty-two week high of $73.38. 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 (NASDAQ:XEL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.81 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by ($0.06). Xcel Energy had a net margin of 14.40% and a return on equity of 10.65%. Sell-side analysts predict 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.36%. This is an increase from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.28%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of 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 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $69.00 to $80.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Xcel Energy from $73.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $69.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, March 31st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $73.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Xcel Energy

In other Xcel Energy news, Director Devin W. Stockfish bought 2,170 shares of Xcel Energy stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $68.93 per share, for a total transaction of $149,578.10. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 3,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,272.51. This trade represents a 259.26 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Company 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.