Wedbush Securities Inc. Cuts Position in Xcel Energy Inc. $XEL

Wedbush Securities Inc. lessened its position in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 30.8% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 25,447 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,342 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc.’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $1,733,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Accent Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Xcel Energy during the 1st quarter valued at about $29,000. BankPlus Trust Department purchased a new stake in Xcel Energy in the first quarter worth approximately $34,000. Rise Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Xcel Energy by 62.9% in the second quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 518 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Marshall & Sullivan Inc. WA bought a new position in Xcel Energy during the second quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, RMG Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Xcel Energy during the second quarter worth approximately $46,000. Institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:XEL opened at $80.91 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $77.80 and a 200-day moving average price of $72.92. The company has a market cap of $47.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.38. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 12 month low of $62.58 and a 12 month high of $83.01.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.32 by ($0.08). The business had revenue of $3.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.89 billion. Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.52% and a net margin of 14.85%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.25 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.82 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

XEL has been the subject of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley set a $86.00 price objective on shares of Xcel Energy and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. UBS Group set a $85.00 price target on shares of Xcel Energy in a research note on Wednesday. Evercore ISI started coverage on Xcel Energy in a research note on Monday, October 6th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $92.00 price objective on the stock. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Xcel Energy from $84.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. Finally, KeyCorp increased their target price on Xcel Energy from $79.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $87.29.

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.