Heritage Wealth Advisors Has $34.12 Million Stock Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Heritage Wealth Advisors reduced its position in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 0.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 316,728 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 894 shares during the period. Duke Energy makes up approximately 1.7% of Heritage Wealth Advisors’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest position. Heritage Wealth Advisors’ holdings in Duke Energy were worth $34,124,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of DUK. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its position in Duke Energy by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 31,353 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,378,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,456 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $372,000 after buying an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. Intergy Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Intergy Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,113 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $228,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 7,233 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $779,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Missouri Trust & Investment Co grew its position in Duke Energy by 10.3% during the 4th quarter. Missouri Trust & Investment Co now owns 1,071 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $115,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target 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. Guggenheim upped their price target on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $123.87.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:DUK opened at $116.10 on Wednesday. Duke Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $92.75 and a 52-week high of $121.47. The business’s fifty day moving average is $114.58 and its 200 day moving average is $113.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.67. The firm has a market cap of $90.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.33, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.60%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 73.20%.

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.