Headlands Technologies LLC Raises Holdings in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Headlands Technologies LLC increased its position in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 39.5% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 79,188 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 22,417 shares during the period. Xcel Energy accounts for about 0.5% of Headlands Technologies LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Headlands Technologies LLC’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $5,347,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 1.3% in the fourth 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 grew its stake in Xcel Energy by 6.7% in the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its holdings in Xcel Energy by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 19,291,149 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,302,538,000 after acquiring an additional 1,022,194 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 15,178,956 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,029,223,000 after acquiring an additional 616,853 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 19.9% in 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 period. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Xcel Energy Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ:XEL opened at $70.79 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.67 billion, a PE ratio of 20.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.37. 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 52-week low of $51.97 and a 52-week high of $73.38. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $68.67 and a 200 day moving average of $67.32.

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 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%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, April 20th. Shareholders 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. This represents a $2.28 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 66.28%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Devin W. Stockfish acquired 2,170 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $68.93 per share, for a total transaction of $149,578.10. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 3,007 shares in the company, valued at approximately $207,272.51. This represents a 259.26 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on XEL shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. UBS Group upped their price target on Xcel Energy from $70.00 to $73.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.60.

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.