Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) Position Increased by Lazard Asset Management LLC

Lazard Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 10.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 520,452 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 50,128 shares during the period. Lazard Asset Management LLC owned 0.09% of Xcel Energy worth $27,973,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in XEL. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Xcel Energy during the first quarter valued at $80,283,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in Xcel Energy by 7.9% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 19,994,298 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,237,847,000 after purchasing an additional 1,472,435 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in Xcel Energy by 184.9% in the fourth quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,451,483 shares of the company’s stock worth $89,861,000 after purchasing an additional 942,097 shares during the period. Federated Hermes Inc. boosted its stake in Xcel Energy by 247.8% during the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,284,305 shares of the company’s stock valued at $79,511,000 after purchasing an additional 915,046 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its stake in Xcel Energy by 155.3% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,140,853 shares of the company’s stock valued at $70,630,000 after purchasing an additional 693,921 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ XEL opened at $57.36 on Monday. Xcel Energy Inc. has a 52 week low of $46.79 and a 52 week high of $64.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a current ratio of 0.86. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $54.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $55.16. The firm has a market cap of $31.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.23, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.37.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $0.88 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $3.65 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.12 billion. Xcel Energy had a net margin of 13.36% and a return on equity of 11.03%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.76 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Xcel Energy Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, July 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th were issued a $0.5475 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $2.19 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.82%. Xcel Energy’s payout ratio is presently 65.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

XEL has been the subject of several research analyst reports. KeyCorp cut their price objective on Xcel Energy from $68.00 to $65.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 19th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $54.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Bank of America upped their price target on Xcel Energy from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 29th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Xcel Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Xcel Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $62.00.

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.