Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC Buys 5,739 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC increased its position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 8.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 69,912 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,739 shares during the period. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $7,532,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of DUK. PBMares Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Duke Energy by 1.8% during the third quarter. PBMares Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,886 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $563,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. Castleview Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Castleview Partners LLC now owns 1,944 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $224,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC increased its position in Duke Energy by 1.4% during the third quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC now owns 6,591 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $760,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 92 shares during the period. Finally, Chicago Capital LLC boosted its position in Duke Energy by 0.9% in the third quarter. Chicago Capital LLC now owns 10,163 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,172,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Duke Energy Trading Up 0.4 %

DUK stock opened at $115.01 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $88.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.14, a PEG ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.45. Duke Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $90.09 and a 1-year high of $121.25. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $109.73 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $112.76.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 earnings per share (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 company had revenue of $8.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.94 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.63%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 76.84%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank increased 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 note on Thursday, December 12th. KeyCorp cut shares of Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. 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 report on Friday, November 22nd. Mizuho raised Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $116.00 to $121.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Duke Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $122.08.

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.