Balance Wealth LLC Makes New $227,000 Investment in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK)

Balance Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Duke Energy Corporation (NYSE:DUK) during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund purchased 1,859 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $227,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Toth Financial Advisory Corp increased its position in Duke Energy by 31.6% during the first quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 346 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Duke Energy by 2.8% during the 1st quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,034 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $370,000 after purchasing an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management now owns 27,517 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,356,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the period. Quent Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 3.0% in the first quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 2,993 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $365,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Grandview Asset Management LLC grew its position in Duke Energy by 0.6% during the first quarter. Grandview Asset Management LLC now owns 14,135 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,724,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Duke Energy Trading Up 0.0%

Duke Energy stock 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. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $117.81 and its 200-day moving average price is $114.97. Duke Energy Corporation has a 1 year low of $99.21 and a 1 year high of $125.27. The stock has a market cap of $90.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.40, a PEG ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.37.

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

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th were 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 of this dividend was Friday, May 16th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 69.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on DUK shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $127.00 target price (up from $126.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on Duke Energy in a research report on Friday, June 13th. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Duke Energy from $128.00 to $123.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.