Ascent Group LLC Cuts Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Ascent Group LLC cut its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 7.9% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 24,952 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 2,154 shares during the quarter. Ascent Group LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $2,877,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. PBMares Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 1.8% during the third quarter. PBMares Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,886 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $563,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in Duke Energy by 2.1% in the second quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,425 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $444,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Castleview Partners LLC increased its stake in Duke Energy by 4.9% in the third quarter. Castleview Partners LLC now owns 1,944 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $224,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC grew its position in Duke Energy by 1.4% during the third quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC now owns 6,591 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $760,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the period. Finally, Baron Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Duke Energy by 3.5% during the third quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,730 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $315,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DUK opened at $117.05 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $115.18 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $110.29. 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 firm has a market cap of $90.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.52, a PEG ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.47. Duke Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $90.09 and a 1 year high of $121.25.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.06 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.31% and a return on equity of 9.34%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.94 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.57%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is currently 76.84%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on DUK. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on 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. Scotiabank boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $104.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Barclays boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $120.00 to $126.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 18th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $108.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Duke Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $121.69.

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.