Plato Investment Management Ltd Reduces Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Plato Investment Management Ltd reduced its stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 44.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,935 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,530 shares during the period. Plato Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $209,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $705,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in Duke Energy by 43.8% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 511,521 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $55,111,000 after purchasing an additional 155,732 shares during the period. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Duke Energy by 253.0% during the fourth quarter. SRS Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 7,541 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $812,000 after buying an additional 5,405 shares during the period. Bailard Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 10.9% during the 4th quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 31,921 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,439,000 after buying an additional 3,139 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norden Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 18,559 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,000,000 after acquiring an additional 401 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Duke Energy Trading Down 1.9 %

Duke Energy stock opened at $116.46 on Wednesday. Duke Energy Co. has a one year low of $92.33 and a one year high of $121.25. The business’s fifty day moving average is $111.38 and its 200 day moving average is $113.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $89.96 billion, a PE ratio of 20.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.50.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.90% and a return on equity of 9.50%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.59%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 73.20%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on DUK shares. Scotiabank boosted 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. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $121.62.

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.