Griffith & Werner Inc. Makes New Investment in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Griffith & Werner Inc. bought a new stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 22,331 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,406,000. Duke Energy comprises 1.6% of Griffith & Werner Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd largest position.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $163,819,000. Capital Wealth Planning LLC raised its position in Duke Energy by 116.5% in the 4th quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC now owns 2,065,344 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $222,520,000 after purchasing an additional 1,111,581 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in Duke Energy by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 72,885,939 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,852,731,000 after purchasing an additional 779,054 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC grew its position in Duke Energy by 14.8% during the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 4,838,705 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $521,322,000 after purchasing an additional 625,008 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zimmer Partners LP increased its stake in Duke Energy by 40.6% in the fourth quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 2,027,600 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $218,454,000 after purchasing an additional 585,600 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on DUK. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Duke Energy from $126.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $128.00 to $123.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Guggenheim increased their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Citigroup lifted 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. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $125.81.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.8%

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $116.51 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 market cap of $90.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.40, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.39. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $119.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $114.64. Duke Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $99.21 and a 12-month high of $125.27.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released 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 business had revenue of $8.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.70 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.44 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.59%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 69.32%.

Duke Energy 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.