Metis Global Partners LLC Buys 5,450 Shares of Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL)

Metis Global Partners LLC raised its stake in Xcel Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:XEL) by 15.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 39,828 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,450 shares during the quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in Xcel Energy were worth $2,601,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in XEL. Curi RMB Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 14.9% during the third quarter. Curi RMB Capital LLC now owns 5,218 shares of the company’s stock valued at $341,000 after buying an additional 676 shares during the period. Huntington National Bank raised its holdings in Xcel Energy by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 19,113 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,248,000 after purchasing an additional 862 shares in the last quarter. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Xcel Energy by 19.2% during the 3rd quarter. ICICI Prudential Asset Management Co Ltd now owns 7,277 shares of the company’s stock valued at $475,000 after purchasing an additional 1,174 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its position in shares of Xcel Energy by 28.2% during the third quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 28,328 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,850,000 after buying an additional 6,225 shares during the period. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Xcel Energy by 5.4% in the third quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 20,503 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,339,000 after buying an additional 1,050 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.38% of the company’s stock.

Xcel Energy Stock Performance

Shares of XEL opened at $69.46 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $64.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $59.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.93. The stock has a market cap of $39.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.80 and a beta of 0.38. Xcel Energy Inc. has a one year low of $46.79 and a one year high of $69.90.

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The company reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.26 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $3.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.93 billion. Xcel Energy had a return on equity of 10.76% and a net margin of 13.67%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.23 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Xcel Energy Inc. will post 3.55 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

XEL has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays increased their price objective on Xcel Energy from $57.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of Xcel Energy from $69.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Xcel Energy from $68.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Argus upgraded Xcel Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $68.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 26th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on Xcel Energy from $66.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, September 20th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Xcel Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $66.38.

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.