Bell Bank Has $9.11 Million Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Bell Bank lifted its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 14.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 84,526 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 10,439 shares during the period. Duke Energy comprises 0.7% of Bell Bank’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. Bell Bank’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $9,107,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Private Advisor Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 1.7% during the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 76,405 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,810,000 after purchasing an additional 1,308 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 13,829.1% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,125,607 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $129,782,000 after acquiring an additional 1,117,526 shares during the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 13.2% in the 3rd quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 26,620 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,069,000 after buying an additional 3,113 shares during the period. Grimes & Company Inc. grew its position in shares of Duke Energy by 11.4% in the 3rd quarter. Grimes & Company Inc. now owns 9,136 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,053,000 after purchasing an additional 938 shares during the period. Finally, apricus wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 5.2% during the third quarter. apricus wealth LLC now owns 19,886 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,293,000 after acquiring an additional 983 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of DUK opened at $115.58 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $113.00. The firm has a market cap of $89.28 billion, a PE ratio of 20.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.50. Duke Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $90.09 and a 1-year high of $121.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.90% and a return on equity of 9.50%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.20%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on DUK. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $121.62.

Duke Energy Profile

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.