Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Shares Sold by First City Capital Management Inc.

First City Capital Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 1.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,136 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 128 shares during the quarter. First City Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,200,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Sachetta LLC raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 41.9% in the 2nd quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 325 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 100.0% during the third quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 334 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of DUK traded up $0.07 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $107.89. 1,054,616 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,947,083. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The company’s 50 day moving average is $111.95 and its two-hundred day moving average is $111.34. The company has a market capitalization of $83.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.83, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.47. Duke Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $90.09 and a 52 week high of $121.25.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by ($0.11). Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.34% and a net margin of 14.31%. The company had revenue of $8.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.06 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.94 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.87%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 76.84%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Mizuho raised Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $120.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. KeyCorp lowered Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Scotiabank increased their target price on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, Duke Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.