Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Shares Purchased by Xponance Inc.

Xponance Inc. increased its position in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 4.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 110,162 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,278 shares during the quarter. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $11,869,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of DUK. Horizon Investments LLC raised its position in Duke Energy by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 14,542 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,567,000 after acquiring an additional 386 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Duke Energy by 8.4% during the fourth quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 41,504 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,472,000 after acquiring an additional 3,201 shares in the last quarter. Kennondale Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,386,000. PDS Planning Inc increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 3,378 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $364,000 after buying an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mystic Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 10.6% in the fourth quarter. Mystic Asset Management Inc. now owns 12,229 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,318,000 after buying an additional 1,169 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Duke Energy stock opened at $120.85 on Wednesday. Duke Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $92.75 and a 52 week high of $121.47. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $113.44 and its 200-day simple moving average is $113.57. The firm has a market cap of $93.84 billion, a PE ratio of 21.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced 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 return on equity of 9.50% and a net margin of 14.90%. Equities analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 73.20%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DUK has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.93.

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.