12,534 Shares in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Bought by Orca Wealth Management LLC

Orca Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 12,534 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,350,000. Duke Energy comprises approximately 1.2% of Orca Wealth Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC increased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Patriot Financial Group Insurance Agency LLC now owns 8,842 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $953,000 after buying an additional 347 shares during the period. Perigon Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Duke Energy by 23.6% in the fourth quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,042 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,422,000 after purchasing an additional 2,491 shares during the last quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. now owns 1,938 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $209,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the period. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 13.2% in the fourth quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 19,239 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,073,000 after purchasing an additional 2,237 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 885.9% in the fourth quarter. Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI now owns 55,094 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $5,936,000 after buying an additional 49,506 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DUK has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley cut 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 report on Friday, November 22nd. KeyCorp downgraded Duke Energy from an "overweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Mizuho upgraded Duke Energy from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Scotiabank upped their target price on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $122.23.

Duke Energy Stock Down 0.1 %

DUK traded down $0.12 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $112.14. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,537,834 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,102,321. 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 stock's 50-day moving average is $110.09 and its 200-day moving average is $112.44. Duke Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $90.09 and a 1 year high of $121.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $86.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.61, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.49.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last issued 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 the consensus estimate of $8.06 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.34% and a net margin of 14.31%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.94 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.91 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared 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. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.73%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy's payout ratio is presently 76.84%.

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.