Magellan Asset Management Ltd Trims Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Magellan Asset Management Ltd reduced its stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 17.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 249,889 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 52,515 shares during the quarter. Magellan Asset Management Ltd's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $26,923,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Bcwm LLC purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth $9,815,000. Bailard Inc. raised its stake in Duke Energy by 10.9% in the 4th quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 31,921 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,439,000 after acquiring an additional 3,139 shares during the last quarter. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC lifted its position in Duke Energy by 5.5% during the 4th 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. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in Duke Energy by 25.7% during the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 35,755 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,852,000 after purchasing an additional 7,319 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Business Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $384,000. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on DUK. Guggenheim upped their target price on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Scotiabank increased their price target on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $123.87.

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Duke Energy Price Performance

Duke Energy stock traded down $5.14 during trading on Friday, reaching $118.91. The company had a trading volume of 8,331,742 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,292,560. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.67. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $116.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $113.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $92.40 billion, a PE ratio of 20.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.39. Duke Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $92.75 and a 1-year high of $125.27.

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

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.52%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 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.