Rodgers Brothers Inc. Sells 1,300 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Rodgers Brothers Inc. cut its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 5.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 23,475 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,300 shares during the quarter. Rodgers Brothers Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $2,529,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of DUK. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Duke Energy by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 72,885,939 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,852,731,000 after acquiring an additional 779,054 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 2.6% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,488,176 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,016,846,000 after purchasing an additional 442,302 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,562,545 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $922,529,000 after purchasing an additional 135,665 shares in the last quarter. Amundi increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 29.2% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,488,849 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $269,368,000 after purchasing an additional 561,784 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Groupama Asset Managment purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,537,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DUK opened at $119.42 on Monday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $115.17 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $113.68. Duke Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $92.75 and a fifty-two week high of $121.47. The company has a market capitalization of $92.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.91, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.67.

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

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.50%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.20%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on DUK shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $123.87.

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.