Xcel Energy Inc. (XEL) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.57 on January 20th

Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, December 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 29th will be given a dividend of 0.57 per share on Tuesday, January 20th. This represents a c) dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 29th.

Xcel Energy has raised its dividend by an average of 0.0%annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 22 consecutive years. Xcel Energy has a dividend payout ratio of 55.2% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Xcel Energy to earn $4.14 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.28 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 55.1%.

Xcel Energy Stock Up 0.6%

NASDAQ:XEL opened at $73.61 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.51. Xcel Energy has a 12-month low of $62.58 and a 12-month high of $83.01. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $79.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $74.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.45.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The company reported $1.24 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.32 by ($0.08). Xcel Energy had a net margin of 13.46% and a return on equity of 10.45%. The company had revenue of $3.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.89 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.25 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Xcel Energy will post 3.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on XEL shares. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $78.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. KeyCorp reduced their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $85.00 to $84.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Royal Bank Of Canada began coverage on shares of Xcel Energy in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. They issued a “moderate buy” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded Xcel Energy from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, October 24th. Finally, Cowen began coverage on Xcel Energy in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have issued a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Xcel Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target 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.