IMG Wealth Management Inc. Takes Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

IMG Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,365 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $147,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Parkworth Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its position in Duke Energy by 1,500.0% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CGC Financial Services LLC raised its position in Duke Energy by 366.7% in the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 308 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on DUK. Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of 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. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of 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 raised their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Duke Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.93.

Duke Energy Price Performance

DUK opened at $120.29 on Monday. Duke Energy Co. has a one year low of $92.75 and a one year high of $121.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $112.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $113.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $93.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.90% and a return on equity of 9.50%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.48%. Duke Energy’s 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.