Everence Capital Management Inc. Reduces Stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Everence Capital Management Inc. trimmed its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 15.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 24,994 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 4,400 shares during the quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $2,693,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DUK. Goodman Advisory Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the second quarter worth about $2,888,000. Hilltop Holdings Inc. increased its position in Duke Energy by 59.2% during the third quarter. Hilltop Holdings Inc. now owns 23,388 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,697,000 after buying an additional 8,699 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 2.6% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,488,176 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,016,846,000 after buying an additional 442,302 shares during the last quarter. Commerce Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 5.9% in the third quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 269,217 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,041,000 after acquiring an additional 15,069 shares during the period. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd grew its position in shares of Duke Energy by 1,258.1% during the third quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 49,341 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,689,000 after acquiring an additional 45,708 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE DUK traded up $0.47 during trading on Friday, hitting $108.29. 552,508 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,656,199. 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 company has a market cap of $83.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.91, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.47. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $111.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $111.34.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analysts’ expectations of $8.06 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.94 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were paid a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.86%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 76.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DUK has been the subject of several research reports. Barclays upped their price target 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 downgraded shares of Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $120.00 to $126.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Mizuho raised Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Duke Energy in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “buy” rating and a $138.00 price target for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus 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.