Richard C. Young & CO. LTD. Acquires 3,312 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Richard C. Young & CO. LTD. increased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 9.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 39,785 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,312 shares during the period. Richard C. Young & CO. LTD.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $4,286,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of DUK. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. CGC Financial Services LLC raised its stake 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 purchasing an additional 242 shares in the last quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 332.9% during the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $38,000. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Duke Energy stock opened at $115.01 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $88.85 billion, a PE ratio of 21.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. Duke Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $90.09 and a 12-month high of $121.25. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $109.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $112.72.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released 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). 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%. Duke Energy’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.94 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 76.84%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on 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. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. KeyCorp downgraded shares of Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Mizuho upgraded shares of Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.08.

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.