Vestcor Inc Lowers Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Vestcor Inc lowered its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 7.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 119,424 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 9,669 shares during the quarter. Vestcor Inc's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $13,770,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. PBMares Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.8% during the third quarter. PBMares Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,886 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $563,000 after buying an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,425 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $444,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the period. Castleview Partners LLC raised its stake in Duke Energy by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Castleview Partners LLC now owns 1,944 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $224,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the period. Kanawha Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Duke Energy by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC now owns 6,591 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $760,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Baron Wealth Management LLC lifted its position 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 valued at $315,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DUK has been the topic of a number of research reports. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. KeyCorp cut shares of Duke Energy from an "overweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $116.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Duke Energy in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a "buy" rating and a $138.00 price objective on the stock. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $121.69.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DUK traded down $0.72 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $111.14. 2,941,456 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,052,911. The stock has a market capitalization of $85.85 billion, a PE ratio of 20.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $114.86 and a 200-day simple moving average of $110.71. 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 firm had revenue of $8.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.06 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.34% and a net margin of 14.31%. 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 posted $1.94 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. Duke Energy's dividend 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.