Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Shares Acquired by Arkadios Wealth Advisors

Arkadios Wealth Advisors increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 15.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 12,781 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,692 shares during the quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors’ holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,377,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the third quarter valued at $30,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 332.9% during the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 243 shares during the period. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the third quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Duke Energy by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 334 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on DUK shares. KeyCorp downgraded Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of 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. Mizuho upgraded shares of Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price objective 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. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.23.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $109.34 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $84.47 billion, a PE ratio of 20.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.47 and a 200 day simple moving average of $111.97. 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 $90.09 and a 12-month high of $121.25.

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). The firm had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.06 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.34% and a net margin of 14.31%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.94 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.82%. Duke Energy’s 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.