Lokken Investment Group LLC Raises Stock Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Lokken Investment Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 8.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,549 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 194 shares during the period. Lokken Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $275,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. United Bank grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 2.7% during the 3rd 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. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Duke Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Duke Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $210,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. raised its position in Duke Energy by 173,616.7% in the third quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 41,692 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,807,000 after acquiring an additional 41,668 shares during the period. Finally, Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. now owns 45,232 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,215,000 after acquiring an additional 985 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Duke Energy Trading Up 2.2 %

Shares of Duke Energy stock opened at $122.07 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. The firm has a market cap of $94.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.38, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48. Duke Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $92.75 and a twelve month high of $122.50. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $115.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $113.73.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.50% and a net margin of 14.90%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.42%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is currently 73.20%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on DUK. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Guggenheim raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $123.87.

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.