WCG Wealth Advisors LLC Lowers Stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

WCG Wealth Advisors LLC lowered its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 3.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 10,113 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 340 shares during the period. WCG Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,090,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 72,885,939 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,852,731,000 after acquiring an additional 779,054 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in Duke Energy by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 18,097,796 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,949,857,000 after purchasing an additional 124,863 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,873,788 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,930,833,000 after purchasing an additional 385,612 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,562,545 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $922,529,000 after buying an additional 135,665 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 4.4% during the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 8,503,503 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $916,168,000 after buying an additional 357,967 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NYSE DUK opened at $116.51 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $90.55 billion, a PE ratio of 20.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.39. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $119.00 and a 200-day moving average of $114.64. Duke Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $99.21 and a 52-week high of $125.27.

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

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.59%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 69.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $111.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $128.00 to $123.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.81.

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.