Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Shares Sold by Reaves W H & Co. Inc.

Reaves W H & Co. Inc. trimmed its position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 87.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,215 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 48,335 shares during the period. Reaves W H & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $777,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 2.6% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,488,176 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,016,846,000 after acquiring an additional 442,302 shares during the period. Swiss National Bank increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 2,290,641 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $264,111,000 after acquiring an additional 6,500 shares during the period. Groupama Asset Managment acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $2,537,000. Capital Wealth Planning LLC increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 116.5% in the 4th quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC now owns 2,065,344 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $222,520,000 after acquiring an additional 1,111,581 shares during the period. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Duke Energy by 155.1% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,873,321 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $201,832,000 after purchasing an additional 1,138,979 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of Duke Energy stock opened at $118.62 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.63 billion, a PE ratio of 20.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.50. Duke Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $90.22 and a twelve month high of $121.25. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $111.23 and its 200 day moving average price is $113.16. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 earnings per share 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%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.52%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 73.20%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DUK has been the topic of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on 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. Scotiabank increased their price target on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $121.62.

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.