Axxcess Wealth Management LLC Has $3.48 Million Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Axxcess Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 10.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 32,254 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,042 shares during the period. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $3,475,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Duke Energy in the third quarter worth $29,000. Parkworth Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its stake in Duke Energy by 1,500.0% in the fourth quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the period. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Duke Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, CGC Financial Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Duke Energy by 366.7% during the 4th quarter. CGC Financial Services LLC now owns 308 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

DUK has been the subject of a number of research reports. Guggenheim increased 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. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Duke Energy from $114.00 to $121.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 21st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $122.93.

Duke Energy Price Performance

NYSE:DUK opened at $120.85 on Wednesday. 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 fifty day simple moving average of $113.44 and a 200 day simple moving average of $113.57. Duke Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $92.75 and a 1-year high of $121.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $93.84 billion, a PE ratio of 21.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48.

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

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $1.045 per share. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.46%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s payout ratio is presently 73.20%.

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.