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

AlphaQuest LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 3.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,087 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 462 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,518,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 17,488,176 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,016,846,000 after buying an additional 442,302 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,562,545 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $922,529,000 after buying an additional 135,665 shares in the last quarter. Amundi raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 29.2% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 2,488,849 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $269,368,000 after buying an additional 561,784 shares in the last quarter. Swiss National Bank increased its stake in Duke Energy by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 2,290,641 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $264,111,000 after purchasing an additional 6,500 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Groupama Asset Managment purchased a new position in Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,537,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DUK has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Guggenheim raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Scotiabank raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Duke Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.57.

Duke Energy Price Performance

DUK stock opened at $116.78 on Monday. Duke Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $92.75 and a 52-week high of $121.25. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $111.81 and its 200-day simple moving average is $113.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $90.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 research analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.58%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is currently 73.20%.

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.