Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Shares Sold by MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB

MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB cut its position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 0.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 21,596 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 188 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $2,327,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Corundum Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $1,566,000. M.E. Allison & CO. Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $257,000. Diversify Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 21.5% during the fourth quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,742 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $396,000 after purchasing an additional 663 shares during the last quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Duke Energy by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,064 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $536,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LVW Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. LVW Advisors LLC now owns 18,708 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,016,000 after purchasing an additional 754 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:DUK opened at $109.34 on Tuesday. Duke Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $90.09 and a 1-year high of $121.25. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $110.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $112.05. The firm has a market cap of $84.47 billion, a PE ratio of 20.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.49. 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%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.94 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.94 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.82%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 76.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. KeyCorp downgraded shares of Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Barclays lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Scotiabank upped their target price on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Mizuho upgraded Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $122.23.

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.