Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC Acquires 110 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,848 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $967,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in DUK. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Duke Energy during the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 332.9% in the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Duke Energy by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 334 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 167 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of Duke Energy stock opened at $111.42 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $86.07 billion, a PE ratio of 20.48, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.49. Duke Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $90.09 and a 1-year high of $121.25. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $110.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $112.46.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by ($0.11). Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.34% and a net margin of 14.31%. The company had revenue of $8.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.06 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.94 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.75%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 76.84%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Mizuho upgraded Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $116.00 to $121.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Scotiabank boosted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, KeyCorp lowered 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 assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.23.

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.