Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Shares Acquired by Liberty Wealth Management LLC

Liberty Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 7.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 2,016 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 138 shares during the period. Liberty Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $217,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DUK. United Bank lifted its position in Duke Energy by 2.7% during the third quarter. United Bank now owns 4,764 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $549,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 31.0% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 410 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the period. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 38.2% in the third quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 5,796 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $668,000 after acquiring an additional 1,602 shares during the period. Harbour Investments Inc. raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 4.2% in the third quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 21,264 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,452,000 after acquiring an additional 856 shares during the period. Finally, WealthPLAN Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the third quarter worth about $226,000. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE DUK opened at $116.69 on Thursday. Duke Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $92.75 and a 12-month high of $121.25. The stock has a market cap of $90.61 billion, a PE ratio of 20.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. The company has a 50-day moving average of $112.40 and a 200 day moving average of $113.36.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.90% and a return on equity of 9.50%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders 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 3.58%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.20%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DUK has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $122.93.

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.