Principal Securities Inc. Makes New $2.57 Million Investment in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Principal Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 26,430 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,565,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in Duke Energy by 4.6% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 23,010,030 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,030,865,000 after acquiring an additional 1,002,157 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its position in Duke Energy by 4.9% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 10,468,016 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $923,907,000 after purchasing an additional 492,011 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Duke Energy by 11.0% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,515,388 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $799,599,000 after purchasing an additional 842,458 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in Duke Energy by 1.9% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,918,910 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $698,923,000 after purchasing an additional 144,612 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC raised its position in Duke Energy by 11.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,205,441 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $635,952,000 after purchasing an additional 715,069 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Duke Energy

In other news, EVP Louis E. Renjel sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.57, for a total transaction of $277,710.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 14,213 shares in the company, valued at $1,315,697.41. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on DUK shares. Scotiabank cut their target price on Duke Energy from $101.00 to $94.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Mizuho upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $89.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Evercore ISI raised Duke Energy from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $90.00 to $108.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 23rd. Bank of America upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $96.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $99.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $101.31.

Duke Energy Stock Down 0.3 %

NYSE:DUK traded down $0.35 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $102.67. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,778,688 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,997,719. The stock has a market capitalization of $79.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.75 and a beta of 0.45. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $96.65 and a 200-day moving average of $94.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. Duke Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $83.06 and a 52-week high of $103.64.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a net margin of 10.78% and a return on equity of 9.25%. The company had revenue of $7.67 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.31 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.20 earnings per share. Duke Energy's revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 17th will be paid a $1.025 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 16th. This represents a $4.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.99%. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 103.02%.

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.