Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Shares Acquired by Hilltop Holdings Inc.

Hilltop Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 59.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 23,388 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 8,699 shares during the quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $2,697,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of DUK. PBMares Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. PBMares Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,886 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $563,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Duke Energy by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,425 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $444,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Castleview Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Castleview Partners LLC now owns 1,944 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC now owns 6,591 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $760,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Baron Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,730 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $315,000 after buying an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on DUK shares. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $111.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $120.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective 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. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 target price on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $121.69.

Duke Energy Trading Down 1.6 %

Shares of Duke Energy stock opened at $115.17 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $88.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.17, a PEG ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.47. Duke Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $90.09 and a 1 year high of $121.25. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $115.18 and its 200-day simple moving average is $110.29. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 in the previous year, the firm posted $1.94 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.96 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is presently 76.84%.

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.