Centre Asset Management LLC Increases Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Centre Asset Management LLC increased its position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 7.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,721 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 408 shares during the period. Centre Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $616,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. PBMares Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Duke Energy by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. PBMares Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,886 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $563,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the period. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Duke Energy by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,425 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $444,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Castleview Partners LLC boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Castleview Partners LLC now owns 1,944 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $224,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. Kanawha Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC now owns 6,591 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $760,000 after buying an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Baron Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 3.5% in the third quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,730 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $315,000 after buying an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Duke Energy from $120.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 18th. Mizuho raised Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp downgraded Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.23.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:DUK traded up $0.80 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $108.62. 240,897 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,519,204. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.45. Duke Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $90.09 and a 52-week high of $121.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $83.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.97, a PEG ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.47. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $111.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $111.34.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.73 by ($0.11). Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.31% and a return on equity of 9.34%. The firm had revenue of $8.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.06 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.94 earnings per share. Duke Energy’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th were issued a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 15th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.85%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 76.84%.

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.