Annex Advisory Services LLC Makes New $222,000 Investment in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Annex Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,820 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $222,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Parkworth Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Duke Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on DUK. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Duke Energy from $128.00 to $123.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Citigroup raised their target price on Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays upped their target price on Duke Energy from $111.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $127.00 price target (up previously from $126.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $125.81.

Duke Energy Stock Down 0.4%

Duke Energy stock opened at $115.22 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $89.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.67. Duke Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $99.21 and a fifty-two week high of $125.27. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $118.43 and its two-hundred day moving average is $114.90.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 9.50% and a net margin of 14.90%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.44 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.63%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.32%.

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.