Waverly Advisors LLC Has $7.31 Million Stake in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Waverly Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 12.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 67,854 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 7,334 shares during the period. Waverly Advisors LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $7,311,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. ExodusPoint Capital Management LP bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $163,819,000. Capital Wealth Planning LLC boosted its holdings in Duke Energy by 116.5% in the fourth quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC now owns 2,065,344 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $222,520,000 after acquiring an additional 1,111,581 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Duke Energy by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 72,885,939 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $7,852,731,000 after acquiring an additional 779,054 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Duke Energy by 14.8% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 4,838,705 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $521,322,000 after acquiring an additional 625,008 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zimmer Partners LP boosted its holdings in Duke Energy by 40.6% in the fourth quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 2,027,600 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $218,454,000 after acquiring an additional 585,600 shares during the last quarter. 65.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $117.27 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. Duke Energy Co. has a twelve month low of $99.21 and a twelve month high of $125.27. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $119.27 and its 200-day moving average is $114.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.54, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.39.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its earnings results 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 return on equity of 9.50% and a net margin of 14.90%. The company had revenue of $8.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.70 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.44 earnings per share. Duke Energy’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 6.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.56%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is 69.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

DUK has been the topic of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Barclays upped their target price on Duke Energy from $111.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Duke Energy from $128.00 to $123.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price target on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Duke Energy has a consensus 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.