Pitcairn Co. Sells 992 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Pitcairn Co. reduced its position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 14.1% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 6,020 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 992 shares during the quarter. Pitcairn Co.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $694,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of DUK. PBMares Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 1.8% in the third quarter. PBMares Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,886 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $563,000 after buying an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,425 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $444,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Castleview Partners LLC increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Castleview Partners LLC now owns 1,944 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 1.4% in the third quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC now owns 6,591 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $760,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Baron Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 3.5% in the third quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,730 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $315,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Duke Energy stock opened at $114.70 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $115.14 and its 200 day simple moving average is $109.80. Duke Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $89.92 and a 12 month high of $121.25. The company has a market cap of $88.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.08, a PEG ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.47.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly 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 analysts’ expectations of $8.06 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.94 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.64%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 76.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on DUK. Barclays increased their price target on Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $138.00 price objective for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $135.00 price objective on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, KeyCorp downgraded 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 given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Duke Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $121.69.

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.