Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC Invests $269,000 in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Hamilton Point Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund acquired 2,500 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $269,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Duke Energy by 332.9% during the 4th quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the period. Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in Duke Energy by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 334 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of Duke Energy stock opened at $112.28 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $110.09 and its 200-day moving average is $112.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $86.73 billion, a PE ratio of 20.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. Duke Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $90.09 and a 12-month high of $121.25.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.06 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.94 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.72%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is currently 76.84%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on DUK shares. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Mizuho raised Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on 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 note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Six 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, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.23.

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.