Ranch Capital Advisors Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Ranch Capital Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 3.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 16,347 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 570 shares during the period. Ranch Capital Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,761,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in DUK. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. CGC Financial Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 366.7% in the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 308 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares during the period. Winch Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 332.9% in the 4th quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. Finally, Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on DUK shares. Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Scotiabank upped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $122.57.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DUK opened at $116.78 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. Duke Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $92.75 and a 52 week high of $121.25. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $111.81 and a 200-day simple moving average of $113.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $90.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.90% and a return on equity of 9.50%. On average, equities analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business 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 3.58%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 73.20%.

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.