Larson Financial Group LLC Acquires 766 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Larson Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 32.7% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 3,110 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 766 shares during the quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $359,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in DUK. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in Duke Energy by 69.6% in the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 290 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the period. Olistico Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy in the first quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Sachetta LLC increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 41.9% during the 2nd quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 325 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Duke Energy Stock Up 1.8 %

Duke Energy stock opened at $117.05 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $115.09 and a 200-day moving average price of $109.98. Duke Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $90.09 and a 1-year high of $121.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $90.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.52, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.45.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by ($0.11). The business had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.06 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.34% and a net margin of 14.31%. Duke Energy’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.94 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.57%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is currently 76.84%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DUK has been the subject of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Duke Energy from $110.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target 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. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Mizuho raised shares of Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Six equities research 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 company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $121.69.

Duke Energy 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.