Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC Reduces Position in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK)

Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC lessened its stake in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 24.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,588 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 2,149 shares during the period. Stratos Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $804,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 11.6% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,754 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $728,000 after acquiring an additional 700 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $282,000. Davis R M Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 25.5% during the 4th quarter. Davis R M Inc. now owns 4,786 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $516,000 after acquiring an additional 971 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 22.3% during the 4th quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 10,399 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,120,000 after acquiring an additional 1,896 shares during the period. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 3.7% during the 4th quarter. Moors & Cabot Inc. now owns 51,252 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $5,522,000 after acquiring an additional 1,808 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company's stock.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of Duke Energy stock traded up $0.96 during trading on Thursday, reaching $118.13. 2,072,652 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,478,498. The company has a market capitalization of $91.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.37. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $116.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $115.57. 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 Corporation has a 52-week low of $100.90 and a 52-week high of $125.27.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last announced 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. The firm had revenue of $8.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.70 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.40% and a return on equity of 9.88%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.44 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on DUK. UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $127.00 price target (up from $126.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on 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. Barclays lowered their price objective on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $122.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Duke Energy from $127.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, 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. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price 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.