Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Shares Purchased by Fifth Third Bancorp

Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 3.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 296,463 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 9,070 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $31,941,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in DUK. PBMares Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 1.8% in the third quarter. PBMares Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,886 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $563,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. Castleview Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Castleview Partners LLC now owns 1,944 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $224,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the period. Kanawha Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC now owns 6,591 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $760,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,730 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $315,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the period. Finally, Chicago Capital LLC grew its position in Duke Energy by 0.9% during the third quarter. Chicago Capital LLC now owns 10,163 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,172,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Trading Up 0.5 %

NYSE DUK opened at $109.86 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $110.26 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $112.21. The company has a market capitalization of $84.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.49. Duke Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $90.09 and a 12 month high of $121.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.45.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $8.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.06 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.94 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.80%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 76.84%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Duke Energy 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.