Tradewinds LLC. Purchases 535 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Tradewinds LLC. increased its position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 2.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 25,802 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 535 shares during the quarter. Tradewinds LLC.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $2,986,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. United Bank raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. United Bank now owns 4,764 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $549,000 after buying an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy during the third quarter worth $50,000. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the third quarter valued at $210,000. Benjamin Edwards Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 173,616.7% in the 3rd quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 41,692 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,807,000 after purchasing an additional 41,668 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. now owns 45,232 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,215,000 after purchasing an additional 985 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $122.07 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $115.42 and a 200-day moving average of $113.73. Duke Energy Co. has a one year low of $92.75 and a one year high of $122.50. The stock has a market cap of $94.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.44.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.90% and a return on equity of 9.50%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 73.20%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DUK has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Scotiabank increased their price target on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Guggenheim increased their target price on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $123.87.

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.