7,036 Shares in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Bought by McGrath & Associates Inc.

McGrath & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 7,036 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $758,000. Duke Energy accounts for about 1.5% of McGrath & Associates Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DUK. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 11,471.4% in the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 6,777,973 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $781,500,000 after purchasing an additional 6,719,398 shares in the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment bought a new position in Duke Energy in the third quarter worth $2,537,000. Zimmer Partners LP bought a new position in Duke Energy in the third quarter worth $166,263,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 155.1% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,873,321 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $201,832,000 after purchasing an additional 1,138,979 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brookfield Corp ON raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 112.6% in the third quarter. Brookfield Corp ON now owns 1,002,811 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $115,624,000 after purchasing an additional 531,073 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Price Performance

NYSE DUK opened at $116.34 on Thursday. Duke Energy Co. has a one year low of $90.09 and a one year high of $121.25. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $110.67 and a 200 day moving average of $113.08. The company has a market capitalization of $89.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.37, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.50. 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 earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.59%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.20%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on DUK shares. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 22nd. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Scotiabank raised their price target on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $121.62.

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.