Crewe Advisors LLC Reduces Stock Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Crewe Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 6.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,110 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 342 shares during the period. Crewe Advisors LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $551,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC now owns 52,097 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,613,000 after acquiring an additional 2,705 shares during the period. CCM Investment Advisers LLC grew its position in shares of Duke Energy by 24.3% during the 4th quarter. CCM Investment Advisers LLC now owns 83,610 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,008,000 after buying an additional 16,356 shares in the last quarter. Pines Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,032,000. Fifth Third Bancorp lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 296,463 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,941,000 after acquiring an additional 9,070 shares during the period. Finally, Corundum Group Inc. purchased a new position in Duke Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,566,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Duke Energy Price Performance

NYSE:DUK opened at $113.88 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. Duke Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $90.09 and a 12 month high of $121.25. The firm has a market cap of $87.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.50. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $109.91 and a two-hundred day moving average of $112.65.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly 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). The company had revenue of $8.16 billion during 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%. Duke Energy’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.94 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 given a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.67%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 76.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on DUK. Mizuho upgraded shares of Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday. KeyCorp lowered shares of Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Scotiabank lifted 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 report on Thursday, December 12th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Duke Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.08.

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.