Mutual Advisors LLC Sells 510 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Mutual Advisors LLC reduced its position in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 2.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 21,034 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 510 shares during the quarter. Mutual Advisors LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $2,294,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC raised its stake in Duke Energy by 11,471.4% in the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 6,777,973 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $781,500,000 after buying an additional 6,719,398 shares during the period. Groupama Asset Managment acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $2,537,000. Zimmer Partners LP bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $166,263,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in Duke Energy by 155.1% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,873,321 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $201,832,000 after purchasing an additional 1,138,979 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 13,829.1% in the third 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 during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on DUK. Scotiabank lifted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Mizuho raised Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Barclays increased their price objective on Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, KeyCorp cut shares of Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.23.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $109.37 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $110.33 and a 200-day moving average of $112.17. Duke Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $90.09 and a 12 month high of $121.25. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $84.48 billion, a PE ratio of 20.10, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.49.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its earnings results 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). Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.34% and a net margin of 14.31%. The business had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.06 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.94 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced 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. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 76.84%.

Duke Energy 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.