Perigon Wealth Management LLC Buys 2,491 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Perigon Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 23.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,042 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 2,491 shares during the quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,422,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. grew 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 last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Duke Energy by 13.2% in the 4th quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 19,239 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,073,000 after buying an additional 2,237 shares during the last quarter. Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 885.9% in the 4th quarter. Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI now owns 55,094 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $5,936,000 after buying an additional 49,506 shares during the period. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC now owns 11,957 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,288,000 after acquiring an additional 393 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Curran Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $221,000. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company's stock.

Duke Energy Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of DUK traded up $1.66 on Thursday, hitting $112.28. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,204,606 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,079,390. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $110.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $112.45. Duke Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $90.09 and a fifty-two week high of $121.25. 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 market capitalization of $86.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.49.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 for 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 firm's revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.94 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.92 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.72%. Duke Energy's payout ratio is presently 76.84%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on DUK shares. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Mizuho upgraded shares of Duke Energy from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $116.00 to $121.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. KeyCorp cut shares of Duke Energy from an "overweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on 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. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $122.23.

Duke Energy 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.