Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group Increases Stake in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group lifted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 110.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 21,986 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 11,558 shares during the period. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $1,361,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Xcel Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Capital Analysts LLC raised its holdings in Xcel Energy by 293.6% in the fourth quarter. Capital Analysts LLC now owns 433 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 323 shares during the period. Royal London Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new stake in Xcel Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in Xcel Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Finally, Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Xcel Energy during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on XEL shares. Wolfe Research upgraded Xcel Energy from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $58.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 11th. Barclays raised shares of Xcel Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $61.00 to $54.00 in a report on Monday, March 11th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $67.00 to $68.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $68.00 to $59.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $63.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $63.08.

Xcel Energy Trading Up 0.8 %

NASDAQ XEL traded up $0.40 on Thursday, hitting $53.59. 1,576,315 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,422,467. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.36. Xcel Energy Inc. has a twelve month low of $46.79 and a twelve month high of $71.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 0.72 and a quick ratio of 0.59. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $54.32 and its 200-day moving average price is $58.17.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The company reported $0.83 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $3.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.01 billion. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 12.47% and a return on equity of 10.78%. Xcel Energy’s revenue for the quarter was down 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.69 EPS. Analysts predict that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, April 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 15th will be issued a $0.548 dividend. This is an increase from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $2.19 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.09%. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 68.22%.

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.