Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) Shares Sold by United Services Automobile Association

United Services Automobile Association reduced its position in shares of Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 18.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 18,630 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 4,113 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association’s holdings in Duke Energy were worth $2,148,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of DUK. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new position in Duke Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $30,000. Sachetta LLC increased its stake in Duke Energy by 41.9% in the second quarter. Sachetta LLC now owns 325 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Duke Energy during the third quarter worth about $38,000. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake 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 last quarter. Finally, Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 82.7% during the 3rd quarter. Carolina Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 360 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 65.31% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

DUK has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lowered 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 report on Friday, November 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Duke Energy from $111.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 12th. KeyCorp cut Duke Energy from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $135.00 price target on shares of Duke Energy in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Mizuho raised Duke Energy from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $116.00 to $121.00 in a research note on Tuesday, October 15th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $121.69.

Duke Energy Stock Down 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $112.10 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $114.93 and a two-hundred day moving average of $110.59. Duke Energy Co. has a 52-week low of $90.09 and a 52-week high of $121.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55. The company has a market capitalization of $86.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.47.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last released 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). The firm had revenue of $8.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.06 billion. Duke Energy had a return on equity of 9.34% and a net margin of 14.31%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.94 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Duke Energy Co. will post 5.95 earnings per share 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $1.045 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $4.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.73%. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 76.84%.

Duke Energy Company 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.