Cornerstone Advisors LLC Grows Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Cornerstone Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 7.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 36,700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,500 shares during the quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $3,954,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of DUK. United Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. United Bank now owns 4,764 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $549,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 12,211 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,408,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 31.0% in the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 410 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $237,000. Finally, Tyler Stone Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 83.2% in the 3rd quarter. Tyler Stone Wealth Management now owns 2,588 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $298,000 after acquiring an additional 1,175 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DUK opened at $118.46 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $112.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $113.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $91.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. Duke Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $92.75 and a 52 week high of $121.25.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 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%. On average, equities analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 73.20%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on DUK. Scotiabank increased their price target 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. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley lowered 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 report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Guggenheim increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $122.57.

Duke Energy Company 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.