Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Shares Bought by Inspire Trust Co. N.A.

Inspire Trust Co. N.A. grew its stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 26.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 12,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,500 shares during the period. Inspire Trust Co. N.A.’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $1,293,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in DUK. Diversify Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Duke Energy by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Diversify Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,064 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $536,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares during the period. Diversify Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 21.5% in the fourth quarter. Diversify Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,742 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $396,000 after purchasing an additional 663 shares during the last quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 2,473 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $266,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC boosted its position in Duke Energy by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 9,195 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $991,000 after buying an additional 405 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Transform Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Duke Energy by 49.3% in the 4th quarter. Transform Wealth LLC now owns 5,768 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $621,000 after buying an additional 1,904 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Duke Energy Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of DUK opened at $116.47 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 firm has a market cap of $90.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.40, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.39. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $119.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $114.60. Duke Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $99.21 and a 12 month high of $125.27.

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

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.59%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DUK has been the subject of several research reports. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $111.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Duke Energy from $127.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $126.00.

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.