Natixis Advisors LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK)

Key Points

• Natixis Advisors LLC has increased its stake in Duke Energy Corporation by 9.5%, acquiring an additional 67,663 shares, for a total of 777,607 shares valued at approximately $94.8 million.
• Duke Energy recently reported earnings of $1.76 per share for the latest quarter, surpassing analyst estimates, and revenues increased by 7.5% year-over-year to $8.25 billion.
• The company will increase its quarterly dividend to $1.065 per share, with a yield of about 3.53%, marking a growth from the previous dividend of $1.05.

Natixis Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 9.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 777,607 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 67,663 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.10% of Duke Energy worth $94,845,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Investment Management Corp of Ontario raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 212.8% during the fourth quarter. Investment Management Corp of Ontario now owns 79,989 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $8,618,000 after purchasing an additional 54,413 shares during the last quarter. Andrew Hill Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in Duke Energy by 338.6% in the 1st quarter. Andrew Hill Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 37,763 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $4,606,000 after buying an additional 29,153 shares during the period. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its position in Duke Energy by 7.7% during the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 291,667 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $35,575,000 after buying an additional 20,942 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 9.9% in the 1st quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc now owns 127,419 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $14,451,000 after acquiring an additional 11,445 shares during the period. Finally, Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 8.1% in the first quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. now owns 51,354 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $6,264,000 after acquiring an additional 3,837 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DUK has been the subject of several analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $132.00 price target on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Citigroup increased their target price on Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $127.00 price target (up from $124.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Barclays cut their price objective on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $122.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $128.00 to $123.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $127.25.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of NYSE DUK opened at $120.58 on Thursday. The firm's 50-day moving average is $117.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $116.70. The company has a market capitalization of $93.72 billion, a PE ratio of 20.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.37. Duke Energy Corporation has a 12-month low of $105.20 and a 12-month high of $125.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.50.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $8.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.70 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.88% and a net margin of 15.40%. Duke Energy's revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.44 EPS. Equities 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 paid a dividend of $1.065 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 15th. This represents a $4.26 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.53%. This is a positive change from Duke Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $1.05. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.

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