Wealth Dimensions Group Ltd. Lowers Stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Wealth Dimensions Group Ltd. cut its position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 0.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 14,460 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 99 shares during the period. Wealth Dimensions Group Ltd.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,667,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of DUK. EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the first quarter worth about $36,000. 1832 Asset Management L.P. grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 8.7% during the 1st quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 24,645 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,383,000 after buying an additional 1,964 shares in the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the first quarter valued at approximately $65,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.4% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,203,916 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $116,431,000 after buying an additional 16,735 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 34.6% during the first quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC now owns 11,967 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,157,000 after acquiring an additional 3,074 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Bank of America raised their price target on Duke Energy from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $120.00 to $126.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $110.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Duke Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $121.69.

Duke Energy Price Performance

DUK stock opened at $114.70 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. Duke Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $89.92 and a 12 month high of $121.25. The stock has a market cap of $88.60 billion, a PE ratio of 21.08, a P/E/G ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $115.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $109.74.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by ($0.11). Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.31% and a return on equity of 9.34%. The business had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.06 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.94 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. 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.