Choreo LLC Sells 2,270 Shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK)

Choreo LLC trimmed its stake in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 5.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 42,501 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 2,270 shares during the quarter. Choreo LLC's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $5,184,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 18,097,796 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,949,857,000 after purchasing an additional 124,863 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,873,788 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,930,833,000 after purchasing an additional 385,612 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 8,503,503 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $916,168,000 after purchasing an additional 357,967 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 8,001,073 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $862,036,000 after purchasing an additional 499,652 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 14.8% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 4,838,705 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $521,322,000 after purchasing an additional 625,008 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price objective on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $127.00 target price (up previously from $124.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $122.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, 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. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $127.25.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.2%

DUK traded up $0.23 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $119.98. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,905,074 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,493,339. The firm has a market capitalization of $93.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.90, a PEG ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57. Duke Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $105.20 and a 1 year high of $125.27. The stock's 50-day moving average is $116.96 and its 200-day moving average is $116.52.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $8.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.70 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.40% and a return on equity of 9.88%. The business's revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.44 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 15th will be paid a $1.065 dividend. This represents a $4.26 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.55%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This is an increase from Duke Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.05. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 69.32%.

Duke Energy Company 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.