Sigma Planning Corp Has $5.39 Million Stock Position in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK)

Sigma Planning Corp trimmed its position in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 4.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 44,218 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 2,297 shares during the period. Sigma Planning Corp's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $5,393,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Price Performance

NYSE DUK traded up $0.50 during trading on Monday, reaching $117.96. 2,684,825 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,667,797. Duke Energy Corporation has a 1-year low of $104.01 and a 1-year high of $125.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a current ratio of 0.77. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $116.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $115.79. The company has a market cap of $91.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.37.

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

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th were issued a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.54%. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio is 69.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on DUK shares. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Duke Energy from $128.00 to $123.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $127.00 target price (up previously from $124.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Duke Energy from $125.00 to $124.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on Duke Energy in a research note 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $126.88.

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.