Certified Advisory Corp Purchases 278 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Certified Advisory Corp increased its position in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 1.5% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 19,329 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 278 shares during the period. Certified Advisory Corp’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $2,083,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the third quarter worth about $30,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in Duke Energy by 332.9% during the 4th quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Duke Energy by 100.0% in the third quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 334 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Trading Up 2.4 %

Duke Energy stock opened at $109.05 on Friday. Duke Energy Co. has a one year low of $90.09 and a one 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 stock has a market cap of $84.24 billion, a PE ratio of 20.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.49. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $110.59 and a two-hundred day moving average of $111.83.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by ($0.11). Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.31% and a return on equity of 9.34%. The firm had revenue of $8.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.94 EPS. Duke Energy’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business 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 dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.83%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is currently 76.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Mizuho raised shares of Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Duke Energy in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $138.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. KeyCorp lowered shares of Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $122.23.

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.