E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. Makes New $52,000 Investment in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK)

E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 424 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $52,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Toth Financial Advisory Corp lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 31.6% in the 1st quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 346 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in Duke Energy by 2.8% in the first quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,034 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $370,000 after buying an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 3.0% during the first quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 2,993 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $365,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the period. Grandview Asset Management LLC increased its position in Duke Energy by 0.6% during the first quarter. Grandview Asset Management LLC now owns 14,135 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,724,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Alhambra Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 4.1% in the first quarter. Alhambra Investment Management LLC now owns 2,268 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $277,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Price Performance

NYSE DUK opened at $116.98 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $90.92 billion, a PE ratio of 19.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.37. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $117.88 and its 200-day moving average price is $114.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 0.77. Duke Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $99.21 and a 52-week 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, beating the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $8.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.70 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.88% and a net margin of 15.40%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.44 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th were given a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 69.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Citigroup upped their target price on Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. 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. Finally, Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on Duke Energy in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They issued a “market perform” rating on the stock. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $125.75.

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.