Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Shares Acquired by Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC NC

Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC NC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 5.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,501 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 412 shares during the period. Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC NC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $916,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Graver Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $215,000. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 11.2% during the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 704,423 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $76,086,000 after buying an additional 71,211 shares during the period. Ethic Inc. boosted its position in Duke Energy by 69.1% during the fourth quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 9,594 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,034,000 after acquiring an additional 3,919 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co grew its stake in Duke Energy by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co now owns 11,287 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,216,000 after acquiring an additional 207 shares during the period. Finally, First Manhattan CO. LLC. raised its holdings in Duke Energy by 52.3% in the 4th quarter. First Manhattan CO. LLC. now owns 17,102 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,006,000 after acquiring an additional 5,871 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $111.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Guggenheim increased their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $126.00.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $120.31 on Friday. Duke Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $99.21 and a 1-year high of $125.27. The company’s fifty day moving average is $119.48 and its two-hundred day moving average is $114.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $93.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.39.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $8.25 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.70 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.44 EPS. Duke Energy’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS 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 paid a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.47%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is currently 69.32%.

Duke Energy Company 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.