Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Stock Holdings Cut by Grant GrossMendelsohn LLC

Grant GrossMendelsohn LLC lowered its position in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 14.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,069 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 503 shares during the quarter. Grant GrossMendelsohn LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $331,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. PBMares Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Duke Energy by 1.8% during the third quarter. PBMares Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,886 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $563,000 after buying an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Castleview Partners LLC lifted its holdings 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 valued at $224,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 1.4% in the 3rd 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 period. Baron Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Duke Energy by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,730 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $315,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Chicago Capital LLC lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 0.9% during the third quarter. Chicago Capital LLC now owns 10,163 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,172,000 after buying an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of DUK stock opened at $109.34 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $84.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.10, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.70. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $110.55 and its 200 day simple moving average is $111.81. Duke Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $90.09 and a twelve month high of $121.25.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.73 by ($0.11). Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.34% and a net margin of 14.31%. The firm had revenue of $8.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.94 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.94 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced 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. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.82%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 76.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DUK has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of 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 downgraded Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Mizuho raised Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Barclays lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.23.

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.