Everhart Financial Group Inc. Reduces Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Everhart Financial Group Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 4.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,478 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 314 shares during the quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $806,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,239,000. CapWealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Duke Energy by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. CapWealth Advisors LLC now owns 188,038 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $20,259,000 after acquiring an additional 1,903 shares during the period. Kessler Investment Group LLC lifted its position in Duke Energy by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Kessler Investment Group LLC now owns 62,808 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $6,767,000 after acquiring an additional 223 shares during the period. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Duke Energy by 62.2% during the 4th quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 5,110 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $551,000 after acquiring an additional 1,959 shares during the period. Finally, BXM Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $387,000. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of DUK stock opened at $111.69 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $109.85 and a 200 day moving average price of $112.96. The stock has a market cap of $86.27 billion, a PE ratio of 20.53, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.50. Duke Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $90.09 and a 1 year high of $121.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.70.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.34% and a net margin of 14.31%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 76.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on DUK. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. KeyCorp cut Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Scotiabank raised their price target on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $122.08.

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.