22,804 Shares in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Purchased by Kentucky Trust Co

Kentucky Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 22,804 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,457,000. Duke Energy accounts for approximately 1.4% of Kentucky Trust Co’s holdings, making the stock its 21st largest position.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Atlas Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 16.9% in the 4th quarter. Atlas Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,582 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $278,000 after acquiring an additional 374 shares in the last quarter. Certuity LLC lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 29.5% in the 4th quarter. Certuity LLC now owns 3,380 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $364,000 after acquiring an additional 770 shares in the last quarter. New Republic Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. New Republic Capital LLC now owns 3,693 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $398,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas lifted its position in Duke Energy by 10.0% in the 4th quarter. Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas now owns 17,796 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,917,000 after buying an additional 1,619 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wealthcare Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Duke Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $296,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on DUK. Mizuho upgraded shares of Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. KeyCorp lowered shares of Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.08.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of Duke Energy stock opened at $116.70 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.45. Duke Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $90.09 and a fifty-two week high of $121.25. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $109.74 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $112.85. The company has a market cap of $90.15 billion, a PE ratio of 21.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.50.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 76.84%.

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.