Colonial Trust Advisors Decreases Stock Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Colonial Trust Advisors cut its stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 2.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 125,611 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 3,752 shares during the quarter. Duke Energy makes up about 1.2% of Colonial Trust Advisors’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Colonial Trust Advisors’ holdings in Duke Energy were worth $13,533,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new stake in Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter worth about $173,000. Brophy Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter worth about $421,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in 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 during the last quarter. Chiron Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter worth about $2,016,000. Finally, Toronto Dominion Bank lifted its holdings in Duke Energy by 14.2% during the 3rd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 460,151 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $53,055,000 after buying an additional 57,169 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DUK has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their target price on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $124.20.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

NYSE DUK opened at $116.40 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. The business’s 50 day moving average is $116.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $113.88. Duke Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $92.75 and a 12-month high of $125.27. The stock has a market capitalization of $90.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.39, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.39.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 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%. Research analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

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.