Summit Global Investments Sells 5,270 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Summit Global Investments reduced its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 32.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 10,739 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 5,270 shares during the quarter. Summit Global Investments’ holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,157,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Parkworth Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 1,500.0% during the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CGC Financial Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 366.7% during the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 308 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Duke Energy Stock Down 1.0 %

Duke Energy stock opened at $119.01 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $92.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.84, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48. Duke Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $92.75 and a 1-year high of $121.47. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $114.16 and a 200-day moving average price of $113.67.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.50% and a net margin of 14.90%. Equities research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.51%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 73.20%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the company. UBS Group raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Guggenheim raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Scotiabank raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Duke Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $123.87.

Duke Energy Company 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.