Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. Sells 4,870 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. cut its stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 3.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 136,140 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 4,870 shares during the period. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $14,668,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of DUK. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. CGC Financial Services LLC boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 366.7% in the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 308 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares in the last quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 332.9% during the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the third quarter valued at about $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Down 0.7 %

Duke Energy stock opened at $112.46 on Wednesday. Duke Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $90.09 and a fifty-two week 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. The firm has a market capitalization of $86.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.67, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.50. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $110.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $112.61.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.73 by ($0.11). The firm had revenue of $8.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.06 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.31% and a return on equity of 9.34%. Duke Energy’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.94 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.91 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.72%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 76.84%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective 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. 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 report on Tuesday, October 15th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday. KeyCorp downgraded Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Scotiabank lifted their price objective 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. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.08.

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.