GAM Holding AG Makes New $1.87 Million Investment in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK)

GAM Holding AG acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 15,349 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,872,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of DUK. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Duke Energy by 1.1% in 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 grew its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 124,863 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 385,612 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Duke Energy by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,562,545 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $922,529,000 after acquiring an additional 135,665 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 357,967 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Duke Energy Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of DUK stock opened at $115.42 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 0.77. Duke Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $99.21 and a 1 year high of $125.27. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $117.95 and a two-hundred day moving average of $114.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $89.71 billion, a PE ratio of 19.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.37.

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

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th were paid a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 69.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DUK has been the subject of several research reports. Citigroup lifted 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. Raymond James Financial began coverage on Duke Energy in a research report on Friday, June 13th. They issued a "market perform" rating for the company. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Duke Energy from $125.00 to $124.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Duke Energy from $128.00 to $123.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and set a $127.00 price objective (up previously from $126.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $125.75.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding DUK? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.