Morgan Stanley Has Lowered Expectations for Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) Stock Price

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) had its price target trimmed by Morgan Stanley from $74.00 to $72.00 in a report published on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

A number of other analysts have also commented on XEL. KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $69.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Xcel Energy from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Argus raised shares of Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, August 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $66.31.

Xcel Energy Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ XEL opened at $71.35 on Friday. Xcel Energy has a twelve month low of $46.79 and a twelve month high of $71.79. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42. The company has a market capitalization of $40.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.17, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.38. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $65.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $59.75.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.25 EPS 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 firm had revenue of $3.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.93 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.23 earnings per share. Xcel Energy’s quarterly revenue was down .5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Xcel Energy will post 3.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Xcel Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in XEL. Integris Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Xcel Energy by 2.7% during the third quarter. Integris Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,163 shares of the company’s stock valued at $402,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Bond & Devick Financial Network Inc. grew its holdings in 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 grew its holdings 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 last quarter. Gateway Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in Xcel Energy by 4.3% during 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 last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. boosted its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 2.9% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 6,591 shares of the company’s stock valued at $430,000 after acquiring an additional 183 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.