XEL
Wall Street still likes the utility, even with the drama
Xcel Energy is having one of those stock stories where the spreadsheet and the headlines are not on speaking terms. Mizuho just reiterated an Outperform rating and set a $86 price target, basically saying: yes, the regulatory mess is real, but the business still has enough juice to keep climbing.
The catch: regulators are being very extra
The company has been under pressure from a lawsuit filed by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton and a string of public safety power shutoff events in Colorado since December. That’s the kind of stuff that makes utilities feel less like sleepy dividend machines and more like a soap opera with transmission lines.
And here’s the part investors should keep an eye on: roughly 80% of Xcel’s rate base is tied up in active rate cases. Translation? A lot of the company’s future earnings still depend on what regulators allow it to charge customers. That can be a nice tailwind if things go your way — or a headache if they don’t.
Analysts are still split between optimism and caution
Mizuho isn’t alone in sounding constructive. BofA Securities also bumped its target to $86 with a Buy rating, while UBS trimmed its target to $89 from $93 but kept a Buy. So the vibe here isn’t “everyone hates it.” It’s more like: the street likes Xcel’s setup, but nobody’s pretending the risk-free lunch is free.
Big picture: Xcel looks like a utility with a sturdy core business and a very noisy news cycle. If you own it, you’re betting the regulated earnings machine wins out over the legal and operational drama.