Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI Acquires 216 Shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI increased its holdings in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 2.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,503 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $980,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of DUK. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 69.6% during the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 290 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the period. Olistico Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the second quarter worth about $30,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC bought a new stake in Duke Energy in the third quarter worth about $30,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Duke Energy during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Sachetta LLC increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 41.9% during the 2nd quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 325 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Duke Energy Price Performance

NYSE:DUK opened at $114.70 on Friday. Duke Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $89.92 and a 52-week high of $121.25. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $115.14 and a 200 day moving average of $109.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $88.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.47.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.62 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 business had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.06 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.94 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Duke Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be paid a $1.045 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.64%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 76.84%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on DUK shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Duke Energy from $110.00 to $122.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Duke Energy from $122.00 to $118.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $102.00 to $118.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Mizuho upgraded shares of Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Duke Energy in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $138.00 price objective for the company. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $121.69.

Duke Energy Profile

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.