Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc. cut its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 2.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,165 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 295 shares during the quarter. Folger Nolan Fleming Douglas Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,362,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of DUK. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 11.6% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,754 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $728,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in Duke Energy by 16.6% during the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 19,365 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,086,000 after acquiring an additional 2,764 shares during the last quarter. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $69,000. Certuity LLC increased its position in Duke Energy by 29.5% during the fourth quarter. Certuity LLC now owns 3,380 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $364,000 after acquiring an additional 770 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC increased its position in Duke Energy by 70.5% during the fourth quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 3,553 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $383,000 after acquiring an additional 1,469 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of DUK opened at $117.25 on Friday. 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 firm has a fifty day moving average price of $118.13 and a 200-day moving average price of $114.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.37. Duke Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $99.21 and a 12-month high of $125.27.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.17. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.90% and a return on equity of 9.50%. The company had revenue of $8.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.44 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.57%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 69.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have weighed in on DUK shares. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $126.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $128.00 to $123.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $125.81.

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.