Barclays Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) Stock

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) had its target price upped by Barclays from $67.00 to $71.00 in a research report report published on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the stock.

Other research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. UBS Group increased their target price on Xcel Energy from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Jefferies Financial Group raised Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $71.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Friday, November 1st. KeyCorp upped their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $69.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target 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. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, August 26th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Xcel Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.62.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

NASDAQ:XEL opened at $72.56 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.82, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $66.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $60.34. The stock has a market cap of $41.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.38. Xcel Energy has a twelve month low of $46.79 and a twelve month high of $73.38.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.26 by ($0.01). Xcel Energy had a net margin of 13.67% and a return on equity of 10.76%. The company had revenue of $3.64 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.93 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.23 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Xcel Energy will post 3.54 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Xcel Energy

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Integris Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Integris Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,163 shares of the company’s stock valued at $402,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Bond & Devick Financial Network Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 1.1% during the third quarter. Bond & Devick Financial Network Inc. now owns 15,972 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,043,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC lifted its position in Xcel Energy by 5.9% during the third quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 3,037 shares of the company’s stock valued at $209,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the period. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in Xcel Energy by 4.3% in the 2nd quarter. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC now owns 4,413 shares of the company’s stock worth $236,000 after purchasing an additional 182 shares during the period. Finally, Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. raised its stake in Xcel Energy by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 6,591 shares of the company’s stock valued at $430,000 after buying an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. 78.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.