Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) Stock Rating Upgraded by Jefferies Financial Group

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) was upgraded by equities researchers at Jefferies Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has a $76.00 target price on the stock, up from their prior target price of $71.00. Jefferies Financial Group’s target price suggests a potential upside of 13.96% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on XEL. Argus upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 26th. KeyCorp upped their target price on Xcel Energy from $66.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. UBS Group raised their price target on Xcel Energy from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $68.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $66.38.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

NASDAQ:XEL opened at $66.69 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. Xcel Energy has a 12-month low of $46.79 and a 12-month high of $68.36. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $63.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $58.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.79, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.38.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.31 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $3.64 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.93 billion. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 13.67% and a return on equity of 10.99%. Xcel Energy’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.23 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Xcel Energy will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Xcel Energy

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of XEL. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in Xcel Energy by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. now owns 1,625,530 shares of the company’s stock worth $87,372,000 after purchasing an additional 38,653 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 15.5% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,317,349 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,808,000 after buying an additional 176,496 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy by 4.0% in the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 101,681 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,465,000 after acquiring an additional 3,948 shares in the last quarter. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 89.3% during the first quarter. Capstone Investment Advisors LLC now owns 22,287 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,198,000 after acquiring an additional 10,514 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 27.5% during the 1st quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 14,325 shares of the company’s stock worth $770,000 after purchasing an additional 3,089 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

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.