Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) Shares Purchased by Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 0.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,872,969 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 14,397 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned 0.24% of Duke Energy worth $228,446,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of DUK. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Parkworth Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 1,500.0% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 288 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company's stock.

Duke Energy Trading Up 0.6%

NYSE DUK opened at $116.93 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $90.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.37. Duke Energy Corporation has a 52-week low of $99.21 and a 52-week high of $125.27. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $117.52 and a 200 day moving average price of $115.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 during 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 firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.44 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th were issued a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 16th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.57%. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

DUK has been the subject of several research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Duke Energy from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price objective for the company from $125.00 to $132.00 in a research note on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company upped 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. Barclays upped 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. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $128.00 to $123.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Raymond James Financial started coverage on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They set a "market perform" rating for the company. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $126.94.

Duke Energy 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.

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