Pathway Financial Advisers LLC Sells 6,719,670 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Pathway Financial Advisers LLC decreased its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 99.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 58,303 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 6,719,670 shares during the quarter. Duke Energy makes up about 2.1% of Pathway Financial Advisers LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $6,282,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. PBMares Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. PBMares Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,886 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $563,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Castleview Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 4.9% during the third quarter. Castleview Partners LLC now owns 1,944 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 1.4% during the third quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC now owns 6,591 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $760,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 3.5% in the third quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,730 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $315,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Chicago Capital LLC raised its position in Duke Energy by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Chicago Capital LLC now owns 10,163 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,172,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Down 0.4 %

Duke Energy stock opened at $116.26 on Thursday. Duke Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $90.09 and a fifty-two week high of $121.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $89.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.37, a PEG ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.50. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $109.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $112.93.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.31% and a return on equity of 9.34%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.91 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.60%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 76.84%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DUK has been the subject of several research reports. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 22nd. KeyCorp cut Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.08.

About Duke Energy

Duke Energy Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy company in the United States. It operates through two segments: Electric Utilities and Infrastructure (EU&I), and Gas Utilities and Infrastructure (GU&I). The EU&I segment generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electricity in the Carolinas, Florida, and the Midwest.