Marcum Wealth LLC Boosts Stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Marcum Wealth LLC grew its stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 1.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,068 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 132 shares during the quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $869,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. PBMares Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. PBMares Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,886 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $563,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the period. Castleview Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Duke Energy by 4.9% in the third quarter. Castleview Partners LLC now owns 1,944 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $224,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC grew its position in Duke Energy by 1.4% in the third quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC now owns 6,591 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $760,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the period. Baron Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Duke Energy by 3.5% during the third quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,730 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $315,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Chicago Capital LLC lifted its position in Duke Energy by 0.9% in the third quarter. Chicago Capital LLC now owns 10,163 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,172,000 after buying an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on DUK. KeyCorp downgraded Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $120.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Mizuho upgraded shares of Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Duke Energy in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $138.00 price target for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $122.23.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $106.29 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The stock has a market cap of $82.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.49. Duke Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $90.09 and a 1-year high of $121.25. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $110.88 and a 200 day moving average price of $111.83.

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

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.93%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 76.84%.

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.