Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 597.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 31,610 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 27,077 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $3,404,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Parkworth Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in Duke Energy by 1,500.0% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 288 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the period. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Finally, CGC Financial Services LLC lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 366.7% in the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 308 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company's stock.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Guggenheim raised their target price on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. UBS Group raised their target price on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $111.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Duke Energy has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $126.00.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on DUK
Duke Energy Price Performance
Shares of NYSE DUK traded up $0.28 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $117.27. The company had a trading volume of 4,459,281 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,420,396. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $119.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $114.57. The stock has a market cap of $91.15 billion, a PE ratio of 20.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. Duke Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $99.21 and a 1-year high of $125.27.
Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.17. The firm 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 business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.44 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current year.
Duke Energy Dividend Announcement
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.56%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.32%.
Duke Energy Company Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
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