Modern Wealth Management LLC Increases Stock Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Modern Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 16.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,460 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,491 shares during the quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,209,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Parkworth Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its stake in Duke Energy by 1,500.0% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CGC Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 366.7% in the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 308 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of DUK stock opened at $117.10 on Thursday. Duke Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $92.75 and a 1 year high of $121.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.99 billion, a PE ratio of 20.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $114.79 and a two-hundred day moving average of $113.68. 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 earnings per share (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%. As a group, research analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS 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 issued a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.57%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 73.20%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DUK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Scotiabank boosted 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. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Duke Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $123.87.

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.