Heritage Wealth Advisors Lowers Stock Holdings in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK)

Heritage Wealth Advisors reduced its position in Duke Energy Co. (NYSE:DUK) by 0.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 316,728 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 894 shares during the quarter. Duke Energy accounts for about 1.7% of Heritage Wealth Advisors’ holdings, making the stock its 25th largest holding. Heritage Wealth Advisors’ holdings in Duke Energy were worth $34,124,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. raised its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 4.0% during the fourth quarter. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. now owns 5,936 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $640,000 after acquiring an additional 227 shares in the last quarter. Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. purchased a new stake in Duke Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $325,000. Trust Investment Advisors lifted its stake in shares of Duke Energy by 12.9% in the 4th quarter. Trust Investment Advisors now owns 13,637 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,469,000 after acquiring an additional 1,563 shares during the last quarter. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new stake in Duke Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $60,000. Finally, Zions Bancorporation N.A. increased its stake in Duke Energy by 12.0% in the 4th quarter. Zions Bancorporation N.A. now owns 62,225 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $6,704,000 after purchasing an additional 6,657 shares during the period. 65.31% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Duke Energy from $123.00 to $127.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Scotiabank upped their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $113.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Duke Energy from $123.00 to $128.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Guggenheim increased their price objective on Duke Energy from $132.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of Duke Energy from $129.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $123.87.

Duke Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:DUK opened at $116.10 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $114.58 and a 200-day moving average price of $113.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a current ratio of 0.67 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The company has a market capitalization of $90.21 billion, a PE ratio of 20.33, a PEG ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.48. Duke Energy Co. has a 1-year low of $92.75 and a 1-year high of $121.47.

Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 9.50% and a net margin of 14.90%. As a group, equities analysts expect 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 was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a $1.045 dividend. This represents a $4.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Duke Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 73.20%.

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.