Bcwm LLC Purchases New Shares in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Bcwm LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 91,100 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $9,815,000. Duke Energy accounts for about 3.5% of Bcwm LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 8th biggest position.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Bailard Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 10.9% during the fourth quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 31,921 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,439,000 after purchasing an additional 3,139 shares in the last quarter. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. KMG Fiduciary Partners LLC now owns 52,097 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,613,000 after acquiring an additional 2,705 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 25.7% in the fourth quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 35,755 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,852,000 after acquiring an additional 7,319 shares during the period. First Business Financial Services Inc. bought a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $384,000. Finally, Pines Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,032,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on DUK shares. UBS Group upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Scotiabank increased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $123.87.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $119.42 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $92.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.91, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $115.17 and a 200 day moving average price of $113.70. Duke Energy Co. has a fifty-two week low of $92.75 and a fifty-two week high of $121.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.67.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued 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 9.50% and a net margin of 14.90%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were given a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.50%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.