E Fund Management Co. Ltd. Takes Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

E Fund Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 1,873 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $202,000.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. CGC Financial Services LLC increased its position in Duke Energy by 366.7% during the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 308 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares during the period. Winch Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 332.9% in 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 in the last quarter. Finally, Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently commented on DUK. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $122.57.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of DUK opened at $116.78 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $111.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $113.26. Duke Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $92.75 and a 1-year high of $121.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.68 billion, a PE ratio of 20.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.50% and a net margin of 14.90%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 73.20%.

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.