McIlrath & Eck LLC Grows Stock Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

McIlrath & Eck LLC boosted its position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 268.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,255 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 914 shares during the period. McIlrath & Eck LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $135,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of DUK. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Duke Energy by 8.2% during the 4th quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 19,614 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,113,000 after purchasing an additional 1,481 shares during the period. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 68.4% during the fourth quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,801 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $410,000 after acquiring an additional 1,544 shares during the period. Diversify Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Duke Energy by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,064 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $536,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in Duke Energy by 21.5% in the fourth quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,742 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $396,000 after acquiring an additional 663 shares during the period. Finally, Zhang Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth $213,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on DUK shares. UBS Group upped their target price on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $128.00 to $123.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $111.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $126.00.

Duke Energy Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of DUK stock opened at $117.27 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. Duke Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $99.21 and a fifty-two week high of $125.27. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $119.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $114.59. The stock has a market cap of $91.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.39.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $8.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.70 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.90% and a return on equity of 9.50%. The firm’s revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.44 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.56%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.32%.

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.