Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI Has $5.94 Million Stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 885.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 55,094 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 49,506 shares during the period. Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $5,936,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of DUK. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Duke Energy by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC now owns 11,957 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,288,000 after buying an additional 393 shares during the last quarter. Curran Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $221,000. McLean Asset Management Corp grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp now owns 2,581 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $278,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the period. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC now owns 20,813 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,242,000 after acquiring an additional 610 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in Duke Energy by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 62,674 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $6,752,000 after purchasing an additional 4,131 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Duke Energy Price Performance

DUK opened at $109.86 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.45. Duke Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $90.09 and a 1 year high of $121.25. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $110.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $112.36. The firm has a market cap of $84.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.20, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.49.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued 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). The firm had revenue of $8.16 billion during 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.94 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.80%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is presently 76.84%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. KeyCorp lowered shares of Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Mizuho upgraded shares of Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price 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. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $122.23.

Duke Energy Company 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.