Verdence Capital Advisors LLC Has $1.46 Million Stake in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC decreased its position in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,643 shares of the company’s stock after selling 178 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $1,461,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in Xcel Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $5,831,000. Atria Investments Inc increased its stake in Xcel Energy by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 84,467 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,703,000 after purchasing an additional 3,919 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. increased its stake in Xcel Energy by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 145,564 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,828,000 after purchasing an additional 6,134 shares in the last quarter. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. bought a new stake in Xcel Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $957,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Xcel Energy by 6.1% in the fourth 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Trading Down 1.9 %

Shares of XEL stock opened at $68.73 on Thursday. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 52-week low of $46.79 and a 52-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. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $67.58 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $66.34. The company has a market capitalization of $39.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.98, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.43.

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

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced 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. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.32%. This is a boost from Xcel Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Xcel Energy’s payout ratio is presently 66.28%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $71.00 to $69.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $69.91.

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.