Schechter Investment Advisors LLC Trims Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Schechter Investment Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 1.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 11,066 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 165 shares during the period. Schechter Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,192,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of DUK. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC raised its position in Duke Energy by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 6,053 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $698,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in Duke Energy by 56.0% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 12,538 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,446,000 after buying an additional 4,500 shares during the last quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC raised its position in Duke Energy by 44.4% during the 3rd quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 1,404 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $162,000 after buying an additional 432 shares during the last quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC raised its position in Duke Energy by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC now owns 2,416 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $279,000 after buying an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. raised its position in Duke Energy by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 19,005 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,191,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on DUK. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Scotiabank upped 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. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $121.62.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Duke Energy stock opened at $118.62 on Tuesday. Duke Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $90.22 and a 12-month high of $121.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $91.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.50. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $111.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $113.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.44.

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

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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 is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.52%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is currently 73.20%.

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.