Tower Wealth Partners Inc. Acquires New Stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Tower Wealth Partners Inc. bought a new stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 1,846 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $225,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $27,000. Parkworth Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of Duke Energy stock opened at $115.22 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $89.56 billion, a PE ratio of 20.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.37. Duke Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $99.21 and a 12-month high of $125.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $118.43 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $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 analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analyst estimates of $7.70 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.44 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a $1.045 dividend. 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 is 69.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on DUK. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $111.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $128.00 to $123.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, 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. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.81.

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.