Sawgrass Asset Management LLC Has $353,000 Stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Sawgrass Asset Management LLC decreased its stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 4.4% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 3,275 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 151 shares during the period. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $353,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the third quarter worth $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the third quarter worth $30,000. CGC Financial Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 366.7% during the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 308 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 332.9% during the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the third quarter worth $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DUK has been the topic of several recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. KeyCorp cut Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target 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. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price target on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $122.08.

Duke Energy Trading Down 2.1 %

NYSE:DUK opened at $113.89 on Friday. Duke Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $90.09 and a 1-year high of $121.25. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $109.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $112.93. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $87.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.94, a PEG ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.50.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.34% and a net margin of 14.31%. On average, equities analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.67%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 76.84%.

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.