Trust Co. of Vermont Has $1.47 Million Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Trust Co. of Vermont decreased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 2.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 13,666 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 386 shares during the quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,472,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC now owns 52,097 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,613,000 after purchasing an additional 2,705 shares during the period. Goodman Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $2,888,000. CCM Investment Advisers LLC lifted 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 worth $9,008,000 after buying an additional 16,356 shares in the last quarter. Pines Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $1,032,000. Finally, Hilltop Holdings Inc. increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 59.2% in the third quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 23,388 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,697,000 after acquiring an additional 8,699 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Price Performance

NYSE DUK opened at $109.34 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $84.47 billion, a PE ratio of 20.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.49. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $110.47 and a 200 day simple moving average of $111.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.70. 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 quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.73 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $8.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.94 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.94 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is presently 76.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on DUK shares. Barclays boosted 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. KeyCorp lowered shares of Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Scotiabank boosted their target price 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. 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. Finally, Mizuho upgraded shares of Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. 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, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.23.

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.