Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Shares Bought by CCM Investment Advisers LLC

CCM Investment Advisers LLC grew its stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 24.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 83,610 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 16,356 shares during the quarter. CCM Investment Advisers LLC's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $9,008,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of DUK. PBMares Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Duke Energy by 1.8% during the third quarter. PBMares Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,886 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $563,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Castleview Partners LLC increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 4.9% during the third quarter. Castleview Partners LLC now owns 1,944 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $224,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the period. Kanawha Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 1.4% in the third quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC now owns 6,591 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $760,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,730 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $315,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Chicago Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 0.9% during the third quarter. Chicago Capital LLC now owns 10,163 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,172,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on DUK shares. 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 lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $120.00 to $126.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a "buy" rating and a $138.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of 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. Finally, Mizuho upgraded shares of Duke Energy from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Duke Energy currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $122.23.

Duke Energy Trading Down 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE DUK traded down $2.30 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $105.93. 2,998,145 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,117,874. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $111.14 and a 200-day moving average price of $111.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The company has a market capitalization of $81.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.49. Duke Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $90.09 and a 52-week high of $121.25.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.73 by ($0.11). The company had revenue of $8.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.06 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.34% and a net margin of 14.31%. Duke Energy's revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.94 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors 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 3.95%. Duke Energy's payout ratio is currently 76.84%.

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.