Lee Danner & Bass Inc. Buys 309 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Lee Danner & Bass Inc. raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 1.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 23,237 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 309 shares during the period. Lee Danner & Bass Inc.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $2,504,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its position in Duke Energy by 22.8% during the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 5,827 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $628,000 after acquiring an additional 1,082 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 7,999 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $862,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Berkeley Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Berkeley Capital Partners LLC now owns 20,959 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,258,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 290.8% during the 4th quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 88,527 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $9,538,000 after purchasing an additional 65,875 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vinva Investment Management Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 79.3% during the 4th quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 21,993 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,369,000 after purchasing an additional 9,726 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Trading Up 0.7 %

DUK stock opened at $120.17 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. Duke Energy Co. has a 12-month low of $92.75 and a 12-month high of $121.47. The stock has a market cap of $93.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.05, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48. The business’s 50-day moving average is $113.89 and its 200 day moving average is $113.65.

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

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 73.20%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

DUK has been the subject of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday. Scotiabank raised 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. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. Guggenheim raised 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 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. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $123.64.

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.