Victrix Investment Advisors Makes New Investment in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Victrix Investment Advisors acquired a new stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 16,046 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,729,000. Duke Energy accounts for 1.2% of Victrix Investment Advisors' portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in 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 buying an additional 779,054 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 0.7% during the fourth 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 boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 2.2% in 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 acquiring an additional 385,612 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 135,665 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted 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 purchasing an additional 357,967 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Duke Energy Trading Down 0.7%

Duke Energy stock traded down $0.85 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $115.59. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,700,776 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,432,098. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $119.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $114.60. Duke Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $99.21 and a 12 month high of $125.27. The stock has a market cap of $89.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.44.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.17. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.50% and a net margin of 14.90%. The company had revenue of $8.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.44 EPS. Duke Energy's quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 69.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on DUK. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Guggenheim raised their price target on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Duke Energy from $127.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $126.00 to $125.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $125.81.

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.