Banco Santander S.A. Sells 3,560 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Banco Santander S.A. reduced its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 33.3% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,133 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 3,560 shares during the quarter. Banco Santander S.A.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $822,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 9.4% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 108,819 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $10,520,000 after buying an additional 9,334 shares in the last quarter. Goodman Advisory Group LLC bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at $2,888,000. PrairieView Partners LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the 2nd quarter worth $501,000. Marshall Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 158.9% during the 3rd quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC now owns 8,483 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $978,000 after purchasing an additional 5,206 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.4% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 1,203,916 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $116,431,000 after purchasing an additional 16,735 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

DUK opened at $114.70 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The company has a market capitalization of $88.60 billion, a PE ratio of 21.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.47. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $115.14 and a 200 day simple moving average of $109.69. Duke Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $89.92 and a 1 year high of $121.25.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its 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 return on equity of 9.34% and a net margin of 14.31%. The business had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.06 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.94 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.64%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 76.84%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on DUK shares. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $120.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Mizuho upgraded Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $135.00 price target on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $121.69.

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.