Tectonic Advisors LLC Grows Stake in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK)

Tectonic Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 7.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 65,780 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 4,583 shares during the period. Tectonic Advisors LLC's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $8,023,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Duke Energy by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 72,885,939 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $7,852,731,000 after acquiring an additional 779,054 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in Duke Energy by 0.7% during 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 buying an additional 124,863 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Duke Energy by 2.2% during 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 buying an additional 385,612 shares in the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position 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 valued at $916,168,000 after buying an additional 357,967 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 6.7% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 8,001,073 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $862,036,000 after acquiring an additional 499,652 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company's stock.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of DUK stock traded up $0.73 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $117.83. 2,160,639 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,469,533. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.50. The company's 50 day moving average is $116.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $115.88. The company has a market cap of $91.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.37. Duke Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $105.20 and a 1 year high of $125.27.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last released 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. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.88% and a net margin of 15.40%. The firm had revenue of $8.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.70 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.44 earnings per share. Duke Energy's revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.065 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $4.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.62%. This is an increase from Duke Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.05. Duke Energy's payout ratio is currently 69.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $127.00 target price (up from $124.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $125.00 to $124.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Raymond James Financial began coverage on Duke Energy in a report on Friday, June 13th. They set a "market perform" rating for the company. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $127.25.

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.