First Financial Bank Trust Division Purchases 722 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

First Financial Bank Trust Division increased its position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 14.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 5,617 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 722 shares during the quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $605,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of DUK. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Duke Energy during the third quarter worth $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy during the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Sachetta LLC increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 41.9% during the 2nd quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 325 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the third quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in Duke Energy by 100.0% during the third quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 334 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of Duke Energy stock traded up $0.08 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $107.82. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,040,917 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,079,736. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.70. Duke Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $90.09 and a 12-month high of $121.25. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $112.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $111.36. The company has a market cap of $83.29 billion, a PE ratio of 19.82, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.47.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its 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 business’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.94 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.88%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 76.84%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on DUK shares. Mizuho raised Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $116.00 to $121.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Duke Energy in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $138.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective 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 company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.