Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Position Lessened by Kellett Wealth Advisors LLC

Kellett Wealth Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 1.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,506 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 117 shares during the period. Duke Energy accounts for about 0.7% of Kellett Wealth Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Kellett Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,024,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of DUK. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC now owns 52,097 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,613,000 after buying an additional 2,705 shares during the period. Pines Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,032,000. CCM Investment Advisers LLC raised its position in Duke Energy by 24.3% in the 4th quarter. CCM Investment Advisers LLC now owns 83,610 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $9,008,000 after purchasing an additional 16,356 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 296,463 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,941,000 after buying an additional 9,070 shares during the period. Finally, Corundum Group Inc. bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,566,000. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on DUK. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price objective 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. 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, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $121.62.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Duke Energy stock opened at $117.29 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $90.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.54, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.50. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $110.46 and its 200 day simple moving average is $113.06. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. Duke Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $90.09 and a 12 month high of $121.25.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 14.90% and a return on equity of 9.50%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared 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 of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.56%. Duke Energy’s 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.