United Bank Increases Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

United Bank increased its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 23.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,861 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,097 shares during the quarter. United Bank’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $631,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of DUK. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 31,353 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,378,000 after buying an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Duke Energy by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,456 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $372,000 after acquiring an additional 95 shares during the period. Intergy Private Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Intergy Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,113 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $228,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 7,233 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $779,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Missouri Trust & Investment Co lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 10.3% in the fourth quarter. Missouri Trust & Investment Co now owns 1,071 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $115,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DUK has been the topic of several recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets boosted 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, March 11th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Scotiabank raised their price target on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $123.87.

Duke Energy Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $119.42 on Friday. Duke Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $92.75 and a 52-week high of $121.47. The company has a market capitalization of $92.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48. 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 company has a 50 day moving average of $115.17 and a two-hundred day moving average of $113.70.

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

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.20%.

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.