Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Has $4.79 Million Stock Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. raised its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 5.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 44,479 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,206 shares during the quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $4,792,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of DUK. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in 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 acquiring 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 acquiring an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DUK opened at $118.46 on Tuesday. Duke Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $92.75 and a twelve month high of $121.25. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $112.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $113.30. The company has a market capitalization of $91.98 billion, a PE ratio of 20.75, a PEG 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 (NYSE:DUK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.50% and a net margin of 14.90%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.53%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 73.20%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on DUK shares. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 22nd. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Scotiabank raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Guggenheim raised their target price on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Duke Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $122.57.

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.