Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Stock Holdings Lessened by Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC

Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC lessened its position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK - Free Report) by 63.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 5,273 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 9,260 shares during the period. Sherbrooke Park Advisers LLC's holdings in Duke Energy were worth $568,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in DUK. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 2.3% in the 4th quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,975 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $644,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 22.7% during the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 2,166 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $233,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 10.4% during the fourth quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 29,389 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,166,000 after purchasing an additional 2,769 shares in the last quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 28.0% during the fourth quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 5,739 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $618,000 after purchasing an additional 1,256 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 7,208 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $777,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company's stock.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Duke Energy stock traded up $0.28 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $117.27. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,459,281 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,425,722. Duke Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $99.21 and a twelve month high of $125.27. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $119.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $114.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $91.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $8.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.70 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.50% and a net margin of 14.90%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.44 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. Duke Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 69.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. 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. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target 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 upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $126.00.

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.