Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) Shares Sold by ERTS Wealth Advisors LLC

ERTS Wealth Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 3.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,569 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 113 shares during the period. ERTS Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $435,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bcwm LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth $9,815,000. Bailard Inc. grew its position in Duke Energy by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 31,921 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,439,000 after acquiring an additional 3,139 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in Duke Energy by 25.7% during the fourth quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 35,755 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,852,000 after acquiring an additional 7,319 shares during the last quarter. First Business Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $384,000. Finally, Alley Investment Management Company LLC lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 36.4% in the 4th quarter. Alley Investment Management Company LLC now owns 76,477 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,240,000 after purchasing an additional 20,414 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DUK has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $125.00 to $124.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $127.00 price target (up from $126.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $125.75.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of DUK stock opened at $115.42 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.50. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $117.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $114.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $89.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.37. Duke Energy Corporation has a 12 month low of $99.21 and a 12 month high of $125.27.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $8.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.70 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.88% and a net margin of 15.40%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.44 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th were paid a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 16th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.62%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.