Arizona State Retirement System Buys 1,355 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 222,639 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,355 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $23,987,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. CGC Financial Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 366.7% during the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 332.9% during the 4th quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DUK has been the topic of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.57.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $115.26 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $111.51 and its 200-day moving average price is $113.21. Duke Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $92.75 and a twelve month high of $121.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $89.49 billion, a PE ratio of 20.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Equities research analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.63%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 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.