New York State Common Retirement Fund Reduces Stock Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

New York State Common Retirement Fund reduced its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 0.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 837,163 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 200 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned approximately 0.11% of Duke Energy worth $90,196,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. CGC Financial Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 366.7% in the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 308 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Winch Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 332.9% in the 4th quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Duke Energy Trading Up 0.8 %

NYSE:DUK opened at $111.78 on Thursday. Duke Energy Co. has a one year low of $90.09 and a one year high of $121.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.67. The firm has a market cap of $86.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.50. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $109.88 and a 200-day simple moving average of $112.97.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.90% and a return on equity of 9.50%. Equities analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company 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. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is currently 73.20%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased 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 report on Friday, November 22nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $122.08.

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.