Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA Trims Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA lowered its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 5.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 18,750 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,000 shares during the quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $2,287,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Parkworth Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in Duke Energy during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on DUK shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $127.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Duke Energy from $128.00 to $123.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Citigroup upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $130.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Duke Energy from $126.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and set a $127.00 target price (up from $126.00) on shares of Duke Energy in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $125.81.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

NYSE:DUK opened at $116.27 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.67, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. The company has a market capitalization of $90.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.37. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $118.12 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $114.93. Duke Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $99.21 and a twelve month high of $125.27.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by $0.17. Duke Energy had a net margin of 14.90% and a return on equity of 9.50%. The business had revenue of $8.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.70 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.44 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect 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 will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.60%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 69.32%.

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.