Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) Position Lifted by Chemung Canal Trust Co.

Chemung Canal Trust Co. raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 114.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 30,581 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 16,321 shares during the period. Chemung Canal Trust Co.'s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $3,730,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Wayfinding Financial LLC bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the first quarter worth $27,000. Parkworth Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the company. Barclays dropped their target price on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $122.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Duke Energy from $127.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $124.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Duke Energy from $125.00 to $124.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on Duke Energy in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $126.88.

Duke Energy Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of DUK traded down $0.77 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $117.40. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,098,870 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,474,396. The stock has a market cap of $91.25 billion, a PE ratio of 19.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.50. Duke Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $102.66 and a 12-month high of $125.27. The company's 50 day moving average is $116.87 and its 200 day moving average is $115.64.

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 for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.17. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.40% and a return on equity of 9.88%. The firm had revenue of $8.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.70 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.44 EPS. Duke Energy's quarterly revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th were paid a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.56%. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 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.