2,052 Shares in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Purchased by Curran Financial Partners LLC

Curran Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 2,052 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $221,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. McLean Asset Management Corp boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. McLean Asset Management Corp now owns 2,581 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $278,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC now owns 20,813 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,242,000 after purchasing an additional 610 shares in the last quarter. KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 4,131 shares during the last quarter. Apexium Financial LP increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Apexium Financial LP now owns 5,343 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $576,000 after buying an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Duke Energy by 18.7% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 24,772 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,856,000 after buying an additional 3,908 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $109.86 on Monday. Duke Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $90.09 and a 12-month high of $121.25. The company has a market cap of $84.87 billion, a PE ratio of 20.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.49. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $110.26 and a 200 day moving average of $112.36. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $8.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.06 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.94 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.92 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.80%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 76.84%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Morgan Stanley cut their target price 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. KeyCorp cut Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Mizuho raised Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their target price on 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $122.23.

Duke Energy 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.