Highland Capital Management LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Highland Capital Management LLC decreased its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 2.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 44,602 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 920 shares during the quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $4,805,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Invesco LLC raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Invesco LLC now owns 4,565 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $492,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares in the last quarter. Field & Main Bank increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 15.7% during the 4th quarter. Field & Main Bank now owns 8,935 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $963,000 after purchasing an additional 1,215 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 20,740 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,234,000 after purchasing an additional 632 shares during the last quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,848 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $967,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the period. Finally, R Squared Ltd bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $455,000. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

DUK stock opened at $110.67 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $110.20 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $112.46. Duke Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $90.09 and a twelve month high of $121.25. The firm has a market cap of $85.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.34, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.49.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.73 by ($0.11). Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.34% and a net margin of 14.31%. The business had revenue of $8.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.06 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.94 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.78%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 76.84%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DUK has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Scotiabank upped their price target on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. KeyCorp cut Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Mizuho raised Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Duke Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.23.

About Duke Energy

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.