2,054 Shares in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Acquired by Abound Financial LLC

Abound Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm purchased 2,054 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $221,000.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 76,405 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,810,000 after purchasing an additional 1,308 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 13,829.1% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,125,607 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $129,782,000 after purchasing an additional 1,117,526 shares in the last quarter. Dakota Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 8.2% in the 3rd quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 23,418 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,700,000 after purchasing an additional 1,781 shares in the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 8,790 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,013,000 after purchasing an additional 516 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lake Street Advisors Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 6,426 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $741,000 after purchasing an additional 215 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Up 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $115.58 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $89.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. Duke Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $90.09 and a 12-month high of $121.25. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $113.01.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. Analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current year.

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 given a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 73.20%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Scotiabank raised their target price on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $121.62.

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.