Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Has $1.91 Million Stock Position in Xcel Energy Inc. $XEL

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System raised its stake in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 4.4% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 28,052 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,182 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $1,910,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Xcel Energy by 18.3% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 472,344 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,437,000 after purchasing an additional 73,036 shares in the last quarter. Navellier & Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of Xcel Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $2,735,000. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Xcel Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $905,000. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Xcel Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $329,000. Finally, Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc bought a new position in shares of Xcel Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $267,000. 78.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets set a $84.00 target price on shares of Xcel Energy in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $78.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $82.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Mizuho set a $83.00 target price on shares of Xcel Energy in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $81.00 to $80.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $81.91.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

XEL stock opened at $80.93 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $74.65 and a 200 day moving average price of $71.30. Xcel Energy Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $62.12 and a fifty-two week high of $82.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.86 billion, a PE ratio of 22.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.37.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.66 by $0.09. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 14.85% and a return on equity of 10.52%. The firm had revenue of $3.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.31 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.54 EPS. Xcel Energy’s revenue was up 8.6% on a year-over-year basis. Xcel Energy has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.750-3.850 EPS. Analysts forecast that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 EPS for the current year.

Xcel Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, October 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be given a dividend of $0.57 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Xcel Energy’s payout ratio is presently 63.16%.

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.