Liberty One Investment Management LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Liberty One Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 0.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 280,920 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,281 shares during the quarter. Duke Energy makes up 3.3% of Liberty One Investment Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Liberty One Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $30,266,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC increased its stake in Duke Energy by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC now owns 52,097 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,613,000 after purchasing an additional 2,705 shares in the last quarter. Goodman Advisory Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the second quarter worth approximately $2,888,000. CCM Investment Advisers LLC raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 24.3% during the fourth quarter. CCM Investment Advisers LLC now owns 83,610 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $9,008,000 after acquiring an additional 16,356 shares during the period. Pines Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,032,000. Finally, Hilltop Holdings Inc. boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 59.2% in the 3rd quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 23,388 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,697,000 after purchasing an additional 8,699 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.3 %

DUK stock opened at $109.34 on Friday. 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 firm has a market cap of $84.47 billion, a PE ratio of 20.10, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.49. Duke Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $90.09 and a 1 year high of $121.25. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $110.47 and a 200 day simple moving average of $111.88.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.94 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 76.84%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on DUK shares. KeyCorp downgraded shares of Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Barclays upped 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. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Scotiabank increased their price target 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. Finally, Mizuho raised shares of Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.23.

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.