Perennial Investment Advisors LLC Has $227,000 Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Perennial Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 14.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 2,103 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the period. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $227,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Parkworth Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy during the third quarter worth about $29,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1,500.0% in the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Guggenheim upped 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. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, 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. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $123.87.

Duke Energy Stock Down 4.1 %

Shares of NYSE DUK opened at $118.91 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $92.40 billion, a PE ratio of 20.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.39. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $116.33 and its 200-day moving average is $113.84. Duke Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $92.75 and a 1 year high of $125.27.

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

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.52%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 73.20%.

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.