Old North State Wealth Management LLC Raises Stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Old North State Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 7.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 25,378 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,814 shares during the period. Duke Energy accounts for approximately 1.5% of Old North State Wealth Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position. Old North State Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $2,738,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 11,471.4% during the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 6,777,973 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $781,500,000 after purchasing an additional 6,719,398 shares during the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment purchased a new position in Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter worth $2,537,000. Zimmer Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter worth $166,263,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 155.1% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,873,321 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $201,832,000 after acquiring an additional 1,138,979 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 13,829.1% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,125,607 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $129,782,000 after purchasing an additional 1,117,526 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Duke Energy stock opened at $112.46 on Wednesday. Duke Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $90.09 and a 12-month high of $121.25. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $110.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $112.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $86.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.50. 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 (NYSE:DUK) last posted 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). The company had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.06 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.31% and a return on equity of 9.34%. The company’s revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.94 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.72%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 76.84%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on DUK shares. 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 research report on Monday. KeyCorp cut Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Scotiabank upped their price target 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 reduced their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, Mizuho upgraded shares of 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 research report on Tuesday, October 15th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.08.

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.