Wealth Alliance Lowers Stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Wealth Alliance lowered its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 1.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 17,417 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 251 shares during the quarter. Wealth Alliance’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,877,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in DUK. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. CGC Financial Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 366.7% during the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 308 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Winch Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 332.9% during the 4th quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on DUK shares. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price 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, Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.08.

Duke Energy Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of DUK opened at $111.78 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $109.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $112.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $86.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.58, a PEG ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.50. 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 1-year low of $90.09 and a 1-year high of $121.25.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced 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 3.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 73.20%.

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.