Assetmark Inc. Buys 9,042 Shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK)

Assetmark Inc. grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) by 23.6% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 47,304 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,042 shares during the period. Assetmark Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $5,770,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Wayfinding Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Hoey Investments Inc. bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Redwood Park Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:DUK opened at $117.68 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $91.47 billion, a PE ratio of 19.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.37. Duke Energy Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $105.20 and a fifty-two week high of $125.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 0.77. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $116.97 and a 200-day moving average price of $116.66.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.17. The firm 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 9.88% and a net margin of 15.40%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.44 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a dividend of $1.065 per share. This represents a $4.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This is a positive change from Duke Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.05. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 70.65%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on DUK. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $127.00 price objective (up from $124.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $125.00 to $124.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $128.00 to $123.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $122.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $127.25.

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.