Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Shares Sold by Assenagon Asset Management S.A.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. trimmed its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 94.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 46,467 shares of the company’s stock after selling 797,677 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $3,137,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Xcel Energy Price Performance

XEL opened at $67.68 on Wednesday. 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 company’s 50-day moving average price is $68.37 and its 200 day moving average price is $63.75. Xcel Energy Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $46.79 and a fifty-two week high of $73.38. The firm has a market cap of $38.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.42.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last announced its quarterly 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 return on equity of 10.76% and a net margin of 13.67%. The company had revenue of $3.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.93 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.23 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Xcel Energy Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, January 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.5475 per share. This represents a $2.19 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, January 6th. Xcel Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 64.99%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

XEL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $71.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $72.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. KeyCorp raised their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $74.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $69.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Xcel Energy from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $70.00 to $72.00 in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $69.67.

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.