Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Has $1.95 Billion Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 0.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 18,097,796 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 124,863 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,949,857,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. United Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 2.7% during the third quarter. United Bank now owns 4,764 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $549,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $210,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. grew its holdings 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 valued at $4,807,000 after acquiring an additional 41,668 shares in the last quarter. Centiva Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the third quarter worth $2,261,000. Finally, Hilltop Holdings Inc. boosted its position in Duke Energy by 59.2% during the third quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 23,388 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,697,000 after purchasing an additional 8,699 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Price Performance

NYSE DUK opened at $121.08 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $115.63 and a 200 day simple moving average of $113.75. Duke Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $92.75 and a twelve month high of $122.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $94.08 billion, a PE ratio of 21.20, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48. 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 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.50% and a net margin of 14.90%. Research analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.45%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 73.20%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on DUK shares. Guggenheim raised their price target on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $123.87.

Duke Energy 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.