Bestgate Wealth Advisors LLC Makes New $347,000 Investment in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Bestgate Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 3,221 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $347,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of DUK. Parkworth Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 1,500.0% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CGC Financial Services LLC raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 366.7% in the fourth quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 308 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 242 shares in the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on DUK. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Scotiabank upped their target price on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Guggenheim upped their target price on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.93.

Duke Energy Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of DUK opened at $120.85 on Wednesday. Duke Energy Co. has a 52 week low of $92.75 and a 52 week high of $121.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $93.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.17, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48. 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 fifty day moving average of $113.44 and a 200-day moving average of $113.57.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.05. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.50% and a net margin of 14.90%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.46%. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 73.20%.

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.