EP Wealth Advisors LLC Has $3.47 Million Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

EP Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 21.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 30,113 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,378 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $3,472,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Sachetta LLC lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 41.9% in the second quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 325 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the period. Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 334 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the period. Finally, Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 82.7% during the 3rd quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 360 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DUK opened at $112.10 on Monday. Duke Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $90.09 and a fifty-two week high of $121.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $86.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.61, a PEG ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The business has a 50-day moving average of $114.93 and a 200-day moving average of $110.64.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.73 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $8.16 billion for 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 firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.94 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be given a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 76.84%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on DUK shares. Morgan Stanley reduced 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 research report on Friday, November 22nd. Bank of America boosted their target price on Duke Energy from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Duke Energy from $120.00 to $126.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Mizuho raised Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $135.00 price target on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $121.69.

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.