Czech National Bank Increases Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Czech National Bank boosted its position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 6.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 178,235 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 10,745 shares during the period. Czech National Bank's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $21,739,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 11.6% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,754 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $728,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN now owns 10,650 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,147,000 after acquiring an additional 324 shares in the last quarter. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd purchased a new position in Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth $738,000. Sonora Investment Management Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 22.6% in the 4th quarter. Sonora Investment Management Group LLC now owns 4,735 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $510,000 after acquiring an additional 873 shares in the last quarter. Finally, New Wave Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $135,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on DUK. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Guggenheim raised their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays boosted their target price 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on Duke Energy from $128.00 to $123.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $125.81.

Duke Energy Price Performance

NYSE DUK traded down $0.02 on Thursday, hitting $115.96. The stock had a trading volume of 1,072,936 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,867,965. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $118.67 and a 200-day moving average of $114.88. The company has a market capitalization of $90.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.31, 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 52-week low of $99.21 and a 52-week 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, beating the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.17. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.50% and a net margin of 14.90%. The company had revenue of $8.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.70 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.44 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

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 issued a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.60%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Duke Energy's payout ratio is 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.