Mason & Associates LLC Boosts Stock Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Mason & Associates LLC raised its position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 12.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,809 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 320 shares during the quarter. Mason & Associates LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $303,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the third quarter worth about $30,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 332.9% in the fourth quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Duke Energy in the third quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 334 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on DUK shares. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective 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 raised their target price 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. Mizuho raised Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $116.00 to $121.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, KeyCorp downgraded shares of Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.23.

Duke Energy Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of Duke Energy stock opened at $109.34 on Friday. Duke Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $90.09 and a 1 year high of $121.25. 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 company has a market capitalization of $84.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.10, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.49. The company’s fifty day moving average is $110.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $111.81.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.73 by ($0.11). Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.31% and a return on equity of 9.34%. The company had revenue of $8.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.94 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.82%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 76.84%.

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.