Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) Shares Acquired by First Horizon Advisors Inc.

First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 344.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 207,140 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 160,562 shares during the period. First Horizon Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $25,265,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Toth Financial Advisory Corp raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 31.6% in the first quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 346 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 2.8% in the first quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,034 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $370,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management raised its position in Duke Energy by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management now owns 27,517 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,356,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares in the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC raised its position in Duke Energy by 3.0% in the 1st quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 2,993 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $365,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Grandview Asset Management LLC raised its position in Duke Energy by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Grandview Asset Management LLC now owns 14,135 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,724,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

DUK stock traded up $0.53 during trading on Friday, hitting $117.59. The company had a trading volume of 1,953,866 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,485,630. The firm has a market cap of $91.39 billion, a PE ratio of 19.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $117.21 and a 200-day moving average price of $115.37. Duke Energy Corporation has a 1-year low of $99.55 and a 1-year high of $125.27.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.17. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.40% and a return on equity of 9.88%. The company had revenue of $8.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.70 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.44 EPS. Duke Energy's revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th were issued a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 69.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on DUK. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $127.00 target price (up previously from $126.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Monday, June 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Citigroup raised their target price on Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Barclays cut their target price on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $122.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price objective on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Tuesday. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Duke Energy currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $126.88.

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.