Baron Wealth Management LLC Has $308,000 Stock Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Baron Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 4.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,862 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the period. Baron Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $308,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DUK. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC grew its position in Duke Energy by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC now owns 52,097 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,613,000 after purchasing an additional 2,705 shares in the last quarter. CCM Investment Advisers LLC grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 24.3% in the 4th quarter. CCM Investment Advisers LLC now owns 83,610 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $9,008,000 after buying an additional 16,356 shares in the last quarter. Pines Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,032,000. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 296,463 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,941,000 after acquiring an additional 9,070 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Corundum Group Inc. bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,566,000. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Duke Energy Stock Down 0.6 %

NYSE DUK opened at $110.67 on Thursday. Duke Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $90.09 and a twelve month high of $121.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.70. The stock has a market cap of $85.49 billion, a PE ratio of 20.34, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.49. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $110.20 and a 200 day simple moving average of $112.46.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.73 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.06 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.34% and a net margin of 14.31%. Duke Energy’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.94 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.92 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.78%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 76.84%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on DUK shares. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Scotiabank upped their target price on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Mizuho raised shares of Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, KeyCorp lowered shares of Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $122.23.

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.