Sabal Trust CO Has $27.12 Million Position in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK)

Sabal Trust CO lowered its holdings in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 1.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 222,325 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 2,328 shares during the quarter. Duke Energy comprises about 1.5% of Sabal Trust CO's investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position. Sabal Trust CO's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $27,117,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 779,054 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in shares of 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 raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 2.2% during the fourth 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 during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,562,545 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $922,529,000 after acquiring an additional 135,665 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 4.4% during 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 during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company's stock.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.6%

NYSE DUK traded up $0.68 on Friday, reaching $116.93. The company had a trading volume of 3,567,516 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,474,279. The company's fifty day moving average is $117.52 and its 200-day moving average is $115.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.37. 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.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.17. The company had revenue of $8.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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 for the quarter was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.44 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th were given a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 16th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.57%. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 69.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DUK has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Guggenheim increased their price target on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Citigroup increased their target price on Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Raymond James Financial began coverage on Duke Energy in a research report on Friday, June 13th. They set a "market perform" rating for the company. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $125.00 to $124.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $128.00 to $123.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Duke Energy 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.