Verum Partners LLC Has $428,000 Position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Verum Partners LLC decreased its position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 3.7% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 3,972 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 154 shares during the quarter. Verum Partners LLC’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $428,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of DUK. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy in the third quarter worth about $30,000. Winch Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Duke Energy by 332.9% during the 4th quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Duke Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in Duke Energy by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 334 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 167 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on DUK. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Scotiabank boosted 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. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. KeyCorp cut Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Mizuho raised Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $122.23.

Duke Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE DUK opened at $110.73 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $110.41 and a 200-day moving average of $112.12. The company has a market capitalization of $85.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.49. Duke Energy Co. has a 12 month low of $90.09 and a 12 month high of $121.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.70, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.73 by ($0.11). Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.34% and a net margin of 14.31%. The company had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.94 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.92 EPS for the current year.

Duke Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.77%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 76.84%.

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.