Raleigh Capital Management Inc. Sells 421 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Raleigh Capital Management Inc. reduced its stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 2.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 17,715 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 421 shares during the period. Raleigh Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,909,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of DUK. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 332.9% in the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the period. Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 100.0% during the third quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 334 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of DUK stock opened at $108.86 on Thursday. Duke Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $90.09 and a fifty-two week high of $121.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $84.09 billion, a PE ratio of 20.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.49. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $110.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $112.17.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 company had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.06 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.31% and a return on equity of 9.34%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.94 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.84%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 76.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DUK has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Barclays lifted their price target 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. KeyCorp downgraded Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Morgan Stanley cut 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. Mizuho upgraded shares of Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.23.

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.