Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Holdings Trimmed by Centiva Capital LP

Centiva Capital LP lowered its holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 70.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,750 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 13,863 shares during the period. Centiva Capital LP’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $620,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Parkworth Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. increased its stake in Duke Energy by 1,500.0% in the 4th quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 270 shares during the period. Finally, CGC Financial Services LLC lifted its position in Duke Energy by 366.7% in the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 308 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 242 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on DUK shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Guggenheim raised their price target on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 21st. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $128.00 to $123.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, 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. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $126.00.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DUK opened at $120.31 on Friday. 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 has a market cap of $93.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.07, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.39. The business’s 50 day moving average is $119.48 and its two-hundred day moving average is $114.64.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.17. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.90% and a return on equity of 9.50%. The firm had revenue of $8.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.44 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.47%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.32%.

Duke Energy Company 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.