Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Stock Position Increased by Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 25.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 35,755 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,319 shares during the quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $3,852,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in DUK. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. CGC Financial Services LLC raised its position 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 worth $33,000 after buying an additional 242 shares in the last quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC raised its position 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 worth $34,000 after buying an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on DUK shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped 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. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $122.93.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Duke Energy stock opened at $118.25 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $112.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $113.40. The company has a market cap of $91.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.44. Duke Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $92.75 and a fifty-two week high of $121.25.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 EPS 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%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.53%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is presently 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.