Charles Schwab Trust Co Acquires 1,183 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Charles Schwab Trust Co boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 64.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,007 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,183 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Trust Co’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $324,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in DUK. Royal Fund Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Royal Fund Management LLC now owns 32,782 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,578,000 after acquiring an additional 593 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 4.6% during the fourth quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 9,195 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $991,000 after buying an additional 405 shares during the last quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in Duke Energy by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,473 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $266,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares in the last quarter. Tudor Financial Inc. grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 33.9% during the 4th quarter. Tudor Financial Inc. now owns 5,387 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $580,000 after acquiring an additional 1,363 shares during the period. Finally, New Hampshire Trust raised its stake in Duke Energy by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. New Hampshire Trust now owns 3,943 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $425,000 after acquiring an additional 484 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $109.34 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $84.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.10, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.49. Duke Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $90.09 and a 52-week high of $121.25. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $110.47 and a 200-day moving average price of $112.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly 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). The company had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.06 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.31% and a return on equity of 9.34%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.94 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.92 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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