Studio Investment Management LLC Has $1.22 Million Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Studio Investment Management LLC lowered its stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 16.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 11,338 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 2,302 shares during the period. Studio Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,222,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Parkworth Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. increased its stake in Duke Energy by 1,500.0% during the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the period. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, CGC Financial Services LLC increased its stake in Duke Energy by 366.7% during the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 308 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 242 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on DUK. Guggenheim upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. UBS Group boosted their target price on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Citigroup upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $127.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Duke Energy from $128.00 to $123.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $126.00.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Duke Energy stock opened at $116.27 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $90.37 billion, a PE ratio of 20.36, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.39. Duke Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $99.21 and a 12 month high of $125.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $119.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $114.54.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $8.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.44 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.60%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 69.32%.

Duke Energy 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.