Delta Financial Advisors LLC Has $1.08 Million Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Delta Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 1.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,004 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 161 shares during the period. Delta Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,078,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 35.0% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 50,308 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,834,000 after purchasing an additional 13,056 shares during the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 10.7% in the third quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 208,291 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $24,185,000 after acquiring an additional 20,183 shares during the period. IVC Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the third quarter valued at $205,000. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC now owns 8,495 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $979,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Orrstown Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $217,000. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on DUK shares. Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $121.62.

Duke Energy Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of Duke Energy stock opened at $117.29 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $110.46 and its 200-day moving average price is $113.06. The company has a market cap of $90.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.54, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.50. Duke Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $90.09 and a 12-month high of $121.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.44 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 net margin of 14.90% and a return on equity of 9.50%. On average, equities analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

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 paid a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.56%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.20%.

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.