Alpine Bank Wealth Management Invests $370,000 in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK)

Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 3,031 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $370,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC increased its stake in Duke Energy by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 11,762 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,435,000 after acquiring an additional 457 shares during the period. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 127.8% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 9,206 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,123,000 after purchasing an additional 5,164 shares during the last quarter. Aurora Private Wealth Inc. bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the 1st quarter valued at $1,603,000. Spire Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 10.8% in the 1st quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 7,167 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $874,000 after purchasing an additional 701 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Golden State Equity Partners increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Equity Partners now owns 9,571 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,167,000 after purchasing an additional 312 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of DUK opened at $116.98 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.50. Duke Energy Corporation has a one year low of $99.21 and a one year high of $125.27. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $117.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $114.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $90.92 billion, a PE ratio of 19.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.37.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $8.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.70 billion. Duke Energy had a net margin of 15.40% and a return on equity of 9.88%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.44 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Corporation will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th were given a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.57%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 16th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 69.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on DUK shares. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Duke Energy from $125.00 to $124.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Barclays raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $111.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Citigroup raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Guggenheim raised their price objective on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $125.75.

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.