Lokken Investment Group LLC Grows Stock Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Lokken Investment Group LLC raised its position in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 8.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,549 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 194 shares during the period. Lokken Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $275,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in DUK. United Bank grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. United Bank now owns 4,764 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $549,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the third quarter worth approximately $210,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 173,616.7% during the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 41,692 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,807,000 after acquiring an additional 41,668 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. grew its position in Duke Energy by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. now owns 45,232 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,215,000 after acquiring an additional 985 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Duke Energy stock opened at $122.07 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $94.85 billion, a PE ratio of 21.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $115.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $113.73. Duke Energy Co. has a one year low of $92.75 and a one year high of $122.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.67.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 EPS 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%. Research analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.42%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 73.20%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $123.87.

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.