Freestone Capital Holdings LLC Raises Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Freestone Capital Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 22.9% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,345 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 437 shares during the period. Freestone Capital Holdings LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $253,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Baron Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 3.5% during the third quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,730 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $315,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB lifted its position in Duke Energy by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 31,353 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,378,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,456 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $372,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Intergy Private Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Duke Energy by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Intergy Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,113 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $228,000 after buying an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 7,233 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $779,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Duke Energy Stock Up 1.7 %

NYSE DUK opened at $116.78 on Friday. Duke Energy Co. has a 1 year low of $92.75 and a 1 year high of $121.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $90.68 billion, a PE ratio of 20.45, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The business’s 50-day moving average is $111.81 and its 200 day moving average is $113.25.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The utilities provider reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.58%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 73.20%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Guggenheim increased their price objective on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Scotiabank boosted their target price on Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group increased 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. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $119.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $122.57.

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.