Gleason Group Inc. Sells 157 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Gleason Group Inc. lessened its position in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 6.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,239 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 157 shares during the period. Gleason Group Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $273,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Parkworth Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DUK has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $126.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target 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. Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $111.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $125.81.

Duke Energy Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of DUK opened at $115.22 on Friday. Duke Energy Co. has a one year low of $99.21 and a one year high of $125.27. The company has a market cap of $89.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.37. 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 firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $118.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $114.90.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.17. The company 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 14.90% and a return on equity of 9.50%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.44 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.63%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.32%.

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.