Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Shares Acquired by Xponance Inc.

Xponance Inc. boosted its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 4.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 110,162 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,278 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.'s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $11,869,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Horizon Investments LLC grew its stake in Duke Energy by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 14,542 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,567,000 after acquiring an additional 386 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Duke Energy by 8.4% in the 4th quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 41,504 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $4,472,000 after acquiring an additional 3,201 shares during the last quarter. Kennondale Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,386,000. PDS Planning Inc grew its stake in Duke Energy by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 3,378 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $364,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mystic Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Duke Energy by 10.6% in the 4th quarter. Mystic Asset Management Inc. now owns 12,229 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,318,000 after acquiring an additional 1,169 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Duke Energy Trading Down 1.0 %

NYSE DUK traded down $1.15 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $119.01. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,850,305 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,998,771. The firm has a market capitalization of $92.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $114.16 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $113.67. Duke Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $92.75 and a 52-week high of $121.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.44.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. Research analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy's payout ratio is currently 73.20%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

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.