Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Shares Purchased by Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 32.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 597,573 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 146,089 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC owned about 0.08% of Duke Energy worth $64,430,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of DUK. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its position in Duke Energy by 11,471.4% during the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 6,777,973 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $781,500,000 after purchasing an additional 6,719,398 shares in the last quarter. Groupama Asset Managment purchased a new position in Duke Energy during the third quarter worth approximately $2,537,000. Zimmer Partners LP purchased a new position in Duke Energy during the third quarter worth approximately $166,263,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in Duke Energy by 155.1% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,873,321 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $201,832,000 after purchasing an additional 1,138,979 shares in the last quarter. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in Duke Energy by 13,829.1% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,125,607 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $129,782,000 after purchasing an additional 1,117,526 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Price Performance

NYSE:DUK opened at $113.89 on Friday. Duke Energy Co. has a one year low of $90.09 and a one year high of $121.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.70. The stock has a market cap of $87.98 billion, a PE ratio of 20.94, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.50. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $109.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $112.93.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its 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 9.34% and a net margin of 14.31%. Equities research analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

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 3.67%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 76.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on DUK shares. KeyCorp downgraded Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Scotiabank raised their target price on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.08.

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.