6,743 Shares in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Bought by Corps Capital Advisors LLC

Corps Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 6,743 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $726,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy during the third quarter worth about $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. CGC Financial Services LLC grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 366.7% during the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 308 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Winch Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 332.9% in the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 316 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Scotiabank upped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Duke Energy presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $121.62.

Duke Energy Stock Up 2.3 %

NYSE:DUK traded up $2.58 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $115.74. The company had a trading volume of 2,249,580 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,296,454. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $109.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $112.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $89.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.29, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.50. Duke Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $90.09 and a 1 year high of $121.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52.

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

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.61%. Duke Energy's dividend 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.