Simon Quick Advisors LLC Increases Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Simon Quick Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 19.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,645 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 597 shares during the quarter. Simon Quick Advisors LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $393,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 332.9% during the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the period. Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy in the third quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 334 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:DUK opened at $109.37 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The firm has a market cap of $84.48 billion, a PE ratio of 20.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.49. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $110.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $112.17. Duke Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $90.09 and a 1-year high of $121.25.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by ($0.11). The business had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.06 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.34% and a net margin of 14.31%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.94 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.92 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

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 paid a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 76.84%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on DUK. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. KeyCorp lowered Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Scotiabank upped their target price on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Mizuho raised Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average 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.